


Creep

by zoedanielle



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-31
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:28:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 44,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24365086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zoedanielle/pseuds/zoedanielle
Summary: You get on the wrong side of one of Don Corneo’s men and now you have a target on your back.
Relationships: Biggs (Compilation of FFVII)/Reader
Comments: 42
Kudos: 41





	1. Chapter 1

Sitting down on the hard bench of the train car and closing your eyes, you had your first opportunity to take a breath all day. You and the rest of your avalanche team had just destroyed the first mako reactor, and by the grace of God, you all made it out alive. Sweaty and dirty, but alive. Panicked whispers made their way through the car, but you couldn't care less. Your nerves were fried, and the soft lull of the train was tempting you to sleep. 

You heard someone sit down beside you, and peeking an eye open, you noticed that it was Biggs. He had sprawled out on the seat just like you, taking deep breaths. A small smile creeped onto your face as you watched him for a moment. Perhaps there was a small chance you had a crush on him.

You closed your eyes again, enjoying the moment of stillness and bliss from your team's victory. You still couldn't believe that you made it out alive. And it was all because of Bigg's impeccable planning. Because he couldn't just be cute, he had to be smart too.

Your momentary bliss was cut short because something felt off. That peaceful feeling you once had was replaced with anxiety. Instinct kicked in quick, and without having to open your eyes you knew what it was: somebody was watching you. 

Opening your eyes, you caught sight of a man sitting across from you. His gaze was intent on you, and you looked away quickly as to not let him know you knew. Was he Shinra? Did he know you were the reason the reactor blew up? You glanced back for a second, a second too long. Now he knew that you knew.

"Have you been working out?" He asked, a sinister grin upon his face. 

You froze, not knowing how to respond to such a strange question.

"I'd love to make you that sweaty."

Biggs opened his eyes upon hearing that comment, looking for the owner of the voice he had just heard.

"E-Excuse me?" You stuttered, still in shock.

"You heard me, honey. I'd love a piece of that ass."

Looking between you and the man, Briggs felt his blood boil. To say something as vile as that to anyone was sick enough, but hearing it directed towards you hit a nerve he didn't know he had. 

"But I know someone who might want you a little more than me. Care to meet him? He’s a pretty big deal in Wall Market.”

"Leave her alone," Biggs warned, keeping his voice low as to not attract anymore attention. 

"Oh, is she your girl or something? Didn't know I was steppin' on another man's territory."

"Territory?" You asked. "Do I look like a belonging to you?" 

"You really want me to answer that, sweet cheeks?" 

The tension was rising on the train, as many bystanders were now watching the situation unfold. After working with Avalanche for so long, it was scary to have attention brought to you. And now after the bombing, an entire car worth of civilians had their eyes glued to your face. You felt sick with fear and anger, and if he wasn’t careful, you would boil over.

"Lets just get out of here, Y/N. I'll take you to the other car," Biggs said calmly. That man could keep composure in any situation, a stark contrast to you. 

You nodded to him, biting your tongue to keep a slew of curses from leaving your lips.

"So your name's Y/N, huh? A pretty name for a pretty girl," 

Biggs wrapped an arm around your shoulder, getting up and positioning his body in between you and the man before leading you through the car. 

"Well Y/N, I hate to see ya leave but I'm sure enjoying the view." 

That was it. 

You slid from out of Biggs’ grasp and surged a fist toward the man's face. The next few seconds were too fast for you to process. One moment you were about to punch the daylights out of a man, and the next moment you were grabbed from behind just before impact. 

"That's right, grab your crazy bitch!"

Now it wasn't just you who was about to rip this man a new one. Biggs had to keep himself from making any decisions that would have you and him detained by train security. 

"Sicko," was all Biggs could say through gritted teeth. 

Next thing you knew, you were in the next car over. Biggs' grip on your arm was tight, making sure you wouldn't escape and go rearrange the creep's face. 

This car was mostly empty and uncomfortably silent, a stark contrast from the previous car. You felt the hand in your arm fall away.

"So much for laying low," he joked, though you could tell he was as unnerved as you were, "you ok?" 

"Yeah," you looked up at him, delivering a quick, fake smile before looking back down.

"No you're not," he said, “You’re a terrible actress. And your hands are shaking."

You looked down at your hands; he was right. You balled them up into fists to stop the involuntary movement.

"I just-" you exhaled, "Of all things that I imagined happening tonight, this wasn't one of them." 

"I know," he said, leading you to a seat and sitting down. 

"He humiliated me, in front of all those people. The one night I need to blend in he picked me out of a crowd and-," you couldn't finish the sentence without tearing up.

"He's a sicko. Men like him get off on getting a rise out of people. Gives 'em a rush or something."

His arm found its way around your shoulders again, which you didn't mind. You always felt safe around him, anyway. 

"I'm sorry you had to deal with him," he spoke quietly. 

In the silent car, you wondered what would've happened if you did punch that creep. Surely you would've been detained by security at the station, and Biggs too. Then they'd somehow find the link between you and the reactor explosion, and then your branch of avalanche would be over with. You and all your friends would rot in jail. Or worse. 

"Thanks for getting me out of there," you said, "I almost went full-Barrett on him," 

He laughed in response. "Full-Barrett" was your team's code name for an adult tantrum. Barrett doesn't know this, of course. 

"No problem," he sighed, "I almost went full-Barrett on him too." 

The car was overtaken by silence once again, giving your mind room to ruminate over what just happened and to figure out what that meant for the near-future. 

You'd still have to get off the train, which meant you may have to see that man again. You prayed to God that you wouldn't have to encounter him. He was only one car away, you remembered, and you kept looking towards the door to make sure he wasn’t going to follow you in. 

"He's not gonna come in here," Biggs said from beside you, "Not after you swung at him. That coward's gonna stay in his car."

“Am I that easy to read?” You asked. 

“Y/N, you’re an open-book.”

Another beat of silence passed through the car. You hoped the rest of the team didn’t know about this. They probably didn’t, though, because if they did, they’d be driving you crazy about now. If they didn’t know, you hoped to keep it that way.

"Can we keep this between us?" 

"Of course."

—————

After meeting up with the rest of the team on the platform and luckily not seeing the creep, you all headed to Seventh Heaven with the mercenary to celebrate the destruction of the reactor. Though after what you’d been through on the train, you could hardly celebrate. You mood had been soured by that incident, and no amount of alcohol was gonna change anything. That didn’t stop you from drinking, though you could hardly make it past your first beer; you felt sick to your stomach just thinking about it. What’s worse, you thought, is that the train only had one destination, which meant he was in the sector seven slums with you. 

“Hey Y/N, What’s got you so broody?” Jessie asked from across the circular table. 

“Broody?” You asked in confusion.

“Yeah, Broody. All you’ve done tonight is sip your beer and stare at the wall,” Wedge added, “what’s got you so glum?” 

“I-uhh,” you racked your brain for an excuse, “Just guilt is all.” 

They seemed to believe this. Jessie’s eyes flashed with a similar guilt, her hand coming over to cup your own. 

“We can’t help everyone, but we’re helping a lot of people,” she said. 

“Yeah, there’s nothing to feel guilty about,” Wedge added.

You fought to keep tears from coming up. You were lying to your friends about a guilt that you didn't have, that you wish you did have but there was nothing there but numbness. While it wasn’t part of the plan, civilians died tonight. All because of your team, because of you. And yet you were numb to that; a creepy guy on the train was what had you upset. How sick, you thought. 

The rest of the night was a blur. You could barely focus on anything besides that man or the fact that he could be anywhere in the slums. Even though you could defend yourself, the thought of meeting back up with him was blood-chilling. 

Jessie and Wedge left after Barrett retired to his back room, leaving only you, Tifa, and Biggs at the bar. 

“Now that they’re gone, do you want to tell me what really happened?” Tifa said as she cleaned one of the glasses.

You looked up at her in surprise, but she only gave you a knowing look. She was far more observant than anyone else on the team. Or maybe it’s because, as Biggs said, you were an open book. And the others just couldn’t read. 

Biggs kept his eyes glued to the beer in his hands as to not raise suspicion, but Tifa saw right through it. She knew that he knew more than he was letting on. 

“You know too, don’t you?” 

He stayed silent, for he promised secrecy to you and intended to keep that promise. After a few more moments of uncomfortable silence, Tifa spoke up again.

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

You trusted her more than the rest of the team. Not that you didn’t trust the team, but you knew them and how they would react. Tifa was one of the only people who could just listen, not act on what they heard. 

“Men are dogs,” you finally spoke up. 

“That they are,” she agreed, before looking over to Biggs, “no offense.” 

“None taken.” he replied. 

“Who broke your heart?” She put down the glass she was working on to look you straight in the eyes. You froze upon hearing her insinuation. In hindsight, maybe you should have worded it better.

“That’s not what happened,” Biggs spoke up beside you. Tifa looked from him back to you, confused. 

“There was a creep on the subway,” you began, “I almost lost it. I could’ve put the whole team in danger.” 

“Correction: you did lose it,” Biggs added, to which you glared at him. 

“Really?” Tifa asked, concerned. 

“Kinda... Biggs dragged out of there before things got messy.” 

Tifa looked back down at the wood grain of the bar, searching for a response. Though that was difficult, because she was speechless. Of all things to happen during a mission, she never imagined this would be an issue. Then again, nobody did.

“Well... whatever this guy did or said to you must’ve been pretty bad to warrant that response.” 

“You don’t know the half of it,” Biggs said. 

You and Biggs stayed at the bar a little bit longer, as you were dreading the moment you would have to step out of those doors. Still, you couldn’t stay all night, and you could tell Biggs was ready to leave.

"Walk me home?" You asked quietly. You weren’t used to asking favors from people, as it almost felt like an admittance to weakness. But right now, you did not want to walk home on your own. 

"Of course.”


	2. Chapter 2

A few lights attached to people's homes were the only guide you had that night in sector seven. It was a quiet night, too, which only made the experience more uncomfortable. You were already uncomfortable as it is, especially after what happened on the train, so this was no help.

Biggs walked beside you, his hands in his pockets. He was a good man for walking you home. And for holding you back earlier. You didn't know what you would've done without him. Killed the man? Gotten arrested? Exposed the whole team? You didn't want to think about it.

"Thank you again for... well, everything today," you spoke up, breaking the night's silence.

"It's no problem," he replied. 

"And sorry for dragging you into it," 

"You didn't drag me into it," he looked over at you, "I made a choice to intervene."

"Yeah but you felt you had to make that choice, for the team's safety," you sighed, "if I could've just controlled myself you wouldn't have had to make that choice."

"Don't blame yourself, alright? The man deserves to get punched. I promise you, you won't be the last woman to swing at him," 

"But I put the mission in jeapordy,"

"That's only if they could connect us with incident. And last time I checked, any evidence that we were there went up with the reactor."

"True," you laughed softly, but something told you that he didn't fully believe what he was saying. You didn’t, either.

"My place is just around this cor-," you stopped in you tracks, making Biggs do the same. For in the dead of night, your voice was not the only one that could be heard. There were multiple voices, all male, coming from around the same corner you just mentioned. 

"Come on, Man, just let one girl get away. We've been waitin' here all night!" An unfamiliar voice said. 

"Said it a thousand times, No! She disrespected me, we're bringin’ her to the Don!" Another voice said, and your stomach dropped. You recognized that voice. 

It was the creep. He and who knows how many other men were outside your house. How in hell did he get your address? You felt like you were going to throw up.

Biggs looked back at you, eyes wide because he recognized the voice too. 

"Did you hear that? I thought I heard someone talking a second ago," one of the goons said, and your heart stopped. 

Biggs grabbed your wrist and ran. The air whipped past you as you ran as far away from those freaks as you could. Your heart was beating a mile a minute and your lungs couldn't keep up with the pace. 

You looked back, thankfully not seeing any of those men running behind you. But still, you weren't safe. Not yet. You didn't even know where Biggs was taking you. His house maybe? As long as those men hadn't found his address too, it may be safe. But you'd have to move after that. Surely they would look into him eventually. 

You kept checking over your shoulder, afraid that the moment you took your eyes away from the street behind you, they would see you and catch up with you. As much as you wanted to keep running forever, you couldn't. Your lungs were burning, your abdomen was aching, every muscle in your body was beginning to protest. 

Biggs slowed down, looking behind one last time before stopping at his door. He rifled though his pockets for his keys, finally finding them and jamming one into the door. Once he unlocked the door, he swung it open, pulled you inside, and closed it again. 

You watched as he locked his front door and then went around his house, pulling all of his curtains together. Ragged breathed filled and left your lungs, in and out, in and out. Tears were welling up in your eyes and you had no control to stop it. You couldn't believe this was happening.

Biggs came back into the room, demeanor changing as he stopped in front of you. You looked away, not wanting him to see your watery eyes.

"Your hands are shaking again," he said softly. 

"I know," your voice betrayed you by cracking. And just like that, you broke down. 

You didn't ever mean to end up like this, staining Biggs' shirt with tears, filling the silent night with your ugly, muffled sobs, but that was what happened. 

"It's gonna be ok," he whispered into your hair over and over, as if hearing multiple times would make you believe it. You didn't. Just like you didn't believe this feeling of safety in his arms would ever last.

After a few more moments like that, your sobs turned to sniffles and you finally felt like you could breathe again.

"I screwed up," you whispered, "I really screwed up."

He couldn't tell you that no, you didn't screw up, because your actions did lead to theirs. But so did his. Though completely deserved, almost punching that guy in the face was what brought him to your place. Biggs did wonder, though, if the man would have followed you anyway. He felt sick even thinking about it...

"We're gonna make it through this, I promise" was what he said instead. You clung onto him another moment before separating.

"I just can't believe it. How does he know where I live?" 

Biggs thought back to the train incident, trying to recall anything that could've tipped the man off. 

And then Biggs remembered. He must've called you by your name before leaving the car with you, because he could remember the man using it to taunt you. 

"Y/N, Huh? A pretty name for a pretty girl."

"Well, Y/N, I hate to see you leave, but I'm enjoying the view" 

Thinking back on it only made him nauseous. If the man knew your name, he could've asked around. There were a lot of loose-lipped people in the slums, surely one of them could've exposed you. 

"What?" You asked, noticing his body stiffen.

He walked over to his couch, sitting down and running a hand through his hair before resting his head in his hands. 

"It's my fault."

"What?" You stood in front of him.

"It's my fault," he began again, "I must've said your name, because I remember him mentioning it... He must've asked around. You do have a unique name and you're pretty well known around here, being part of the neighborhood watch and all..." 

You felt sick to your stomach. And pissed. So pissed. Pissed at the creep, pissed at Biggs, pissed at whoever told the creep where you lived, but mostly pissed at yourself. 

"You're an idiot, y'know that?" You slipped. The tears were welling up in your eyes again, you fought them back, "But so am I. Neither of us knew this was gonna happen." 

As much as he knew it was true, there was no way he could ever forgive himself for this. Because whether he knew it at the time or not, he still put you in danger.

There was a long, tense silence that filled the room, as both of you became lost in your thoughts. Your anxiety was through the roof, for good reason, and you found yourself pacing through his small living room. With every little sound you'd put your hand on your holstered gun; it happened so often that you just decided to keep your hand there. Biggs' clock read 11:38 pm. This was gonna be a long night.

Biggs, being the over thinker and worrier that he is, tried with all his might to find an immediate solution for the problem at hand. There was no immediate solution, deep down he knew there wasn't, but that didn't stop him from trying. After a few minutes of thinking to himself, he noticed your pacing. Watching you go back and forth over and over again was making him dizzy. 

"Pacing isn’t gonna solve anything,” he muttered. 

“What else am I supposed to do? Sit around and wait for them to show up?” you snapped, regretting it immediately, “I’m sorry.” 

“No, no, I get it,” he sighed, “Maybe we should get some rest. Tomorrow we'll deal with the creep, there's nothing we can do about it tonight."

“Yeah,” you stopped pacing, “yeah, good idea.”

"Then you can have my bed, I'll sleep on the couch.”

"No, It's your bed. I'll take the couch.”

"I'm sleeping on the couch tonight, so your choices are my bed or the floor. Take your pick." 

He laid back against the couch, taking up all of the space so you couldn't argue any further. You rolled your eyes, he could be so stubborn sometimes.

"Hey, I saw that!"

—————

Both of you were covered in sweat and dirt, so even though there were bigger things to worry about, showers were a necessity. Biggs let you take one first, and gave you some of his clean clothes to wear afterwards. And when it was his turn, he took the quickest, most efficient shower humanly possible. You were grateful he didn’t leave you alone for very long, though you’d never admit it. And after that, he headed back to the couch and you went to his room. 

If it were any other day, you'd be freaking out about staying at his house, in his bed, wearing some of his clothes, but not today. Being hunted down by a gang really puts little crushes like this on the back burner. Not that you didn't still have feelings for him, they just weren't really important right now. 

Curling up under the sheets and blankets, you wondered you'd ever fall asleep. With the knowledge that people were looking for you, you weren’t so sure. You turned to the side, noticing a familiar scent the pillow; his scent. Somehow, even in this stressful moment, it brought some comfort to you. He always did. Maybe that's why you liked him so much, very few people had ever really earned your trust or made you feel safe, but he always did. 

The exhaustion was really starting to catch up with you, and somehow, you drifted off. Your sleep wasn't very peaceful, though. 

You could hear his voice calling out to you, taunting you, over and over again. It was the creep from the train. There were other voices too, and shadows of men looming all around. No matter how hard you tried to get away from them, they kept following you. There window up ahead, an escape. You pulled the curtains open, and you met eyes with him. His hands were cupped over his eyes like he was peaking in through the glass, a grin formed and grew when he noticed the horror on your face. 

You woke up with a start, breath heavy as you looked to your surroundings. You didn't recognize them at first, only making your panic worse. But then you remembered where you were. You looked at the curtains on the wall next to you; there was no way in hell you were going to open them.

You shut your eyes again, focusing on your breathing. In and out, in and out. You were safe here. For now, at least. 

Your throat was terribly dry, you noticed. So you silently made your way out of the room and into the small kitchen. You've been to his house before, so you knew where to find the glasses. Taking one out, it accidentally clicked against another. You froze in place, waiting to see if it would wake him up. You didn't hear anything, so you continued over to the sink and got your water. You took a sip before walking out of the kitchen.

"Y/N?" A voice whispered. It was Biggs. Through the darkness, you could see his figure, hand over his holstered gun. Upon confirming it was you, he flickered on one of the lamps. 

"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you," you said.

"You ok? Why are you up?"

"I was thirsty,” you took another sip from the glass.

"Why are you really up?" 

"What do you mean?" 

"I know that look, Y/N.” He crossed his arms over his chest, making you feel like a kid in trouble.

"Fine," you sighed, he could really be stubborn when he wanted to, "It was a nightmare."

"About what?" He said, sitting back down on the couch and patting the place next to him. Of course he was gonna make you talk about it.

"What do you think?" You said, looking down at the glass in your hands. 

He must’ve taken the hint as he didn’t push any further. Instead, he reached an arm around you. 

“I know you wanted to keep this between us, but we’re gonna have to tell the rest of the team tomorrow,” he said. 

“I know,” you sighed, “they’re gonna kill me.”

“That’s the least of your worries.”

You stayed like that for a little longer; it was far better than sitting in his room, having to stare at those curtains all night. As much as you hated to admit it, you needed help. Help from Biggs, the rest of the team, and maybe even that jerk of a Mercenary. Hopefully not him, though. You preferred to keep your money.

Biggs took his arm back and used it to rub in between his shoulder blades, something that you took notice of.

“You ok?” You asked him.

“Yeah, my back is just killing me,” he winced. 

"I'll take the couch, it's probably what's giving you all that back pain," you said. He stopped and glanced back at you, that stubborn look in his eye again.

"No, you’re keeping the bed.” 

"But I'm smaller, I could get more comfortable on the couch than you.”

"Just take the bed Y/N,” he groaned.

You hesitated a moment. 

"There's room for both of us on the bed," you mentioned. He looked back at you, and you suddenly felt like a fool for even bringing it up. Just as you thought you had crossed the line, he replied. 

"And you’re comfortable with that?" He asked. 

"Yeah, I trust you."


	3. Chapter 3

This was definitely a mistake, you thought. Your anxiety made you toss and turn, but you didn't want to keep him up all night, which, in turn, caused more anxiety. You quietly moved to face away from him, and instead, look at the covered window. Every time you looked over at the window, you remembered the dream. Could it have been a premonition? Could he be just outside the house right now, waiting for the right moment to break in?

"Worrying all night is not going to solve anything," the voice beside you said. 

"I know," you sighed, "but I can't seem to stop."

"Come here."

"What?" You turned over to face him. You couldn't have heard him right, because you could've sworn you heard him say-

"Come here." He laid his arm across your pillow, beckoning you closer, "Unless you're not comfortable with this, then we'll just forget about it."

You hesitated. Nothing now or ever had prepared you for this circumstance. Biggs, your team member and the man you had a crush on, was inviting you into his arms. And he was staring at you, waiting for a response.

You hesitantly scooted closer to him, yet still kept some distance. Even though he was initiating it, you didn't want to cross any boundaries or look too eager. Your breath caught in your throat when his arm wrapped around you back, pulling you even closer. You froze under his touch, heart beating out of your chest.

"Are you sure you're ok with this? You're stiff as a board."

"Sorry," you said, letting go of the breath trapped in your lungs, "guess I'm just not used to this."

"To be honest, me neither," he admitted, a small chuckle forming at the end of his words. 

"Really?" You wondered aloud, "I wouldn't have expected that."

"What do you mean?" 

"I just thought maybe you-" you caught yourself, "Never mind."

"No, I want to hear it."

"There's no appropriate way to phrase it."

"Be blunt with it, then."

"I just always assumed you got a lot of action."

For some reason that made him chuckle, and you could feel the warm vibration of his chest from under you. 

"What makes you think that?"

A lot of things made you think that. For example, he was smart, caring, VERY attractive, good with kids, the list could go on and on. But he didn't need to know that. Who ever said he reciprocated your little crush?

"Compared to a lot of guys in the slums, you're a total catch.” 

“A catch, huh?” He hummed, you could practically hear the smirk in his words. 

“Don’t let it go to your head. Most of the guys around here don't wash their asses."

His low rumble of a laugh resonated under you again; you quite enjoyed the feeling. A small smile formed on your lips as you adjusted to get more comfortable. 

"Can I ask you a question?" You asked, to which he hummed in response, "If you're not used to this, then why me? Why now?"

"You looked like you needed some comfort," he began, "I know this whole thing is terrifying to you, it is to me too, but I promise it'll all be alright." 

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because we're gonna get this situation fixed, and you're never gonna have to deal with that sicko again," his arm around you got tighter, something you noticed, "Anyways, you should try to get some rest."

"You're a good man, Biggs."

"I try."

His presence always seemed to comfort you. But now, knowing that he wasn't going to leave your side during this ordeal, you finally felt some degree of safety. That, along with his warm arms and gentle heartbeat, made falling asleep a whole lot easier the second time around.

————————

You looked up at Biggs' sleeping face, rays of light from the window illuminating his features. With his eyebrows unfurrowed and his jaw not clenched, he looked peaceful for a change. Your head lay on his chest, still processing how you got into this situation. 

Sure, you had a crush on him, but that didn't change the fact that you were just friends. Right? Some friends hold each other through the night, Right? Besides, he was just doing it to comfort you. He was a touchy guy, anyway; this was his way of making you feel safe. 

There was a knock on the door, and you suddenly remembered why you were at his house in the first place: people were hunting you down. 

You looked back up at Biggs' face, just as still as the moment before. He must not have heard it. As much as you wanted to wake him up and then hide behind him like some scared puppy, you fought back the urge. 

You could handle this yourself. You were perfectly capable of taking out a group of people if the occasion called for it. You've done it a thousand times with Shinra guards. Besides, you didn't want to drag him into all this. This wasn't his battle. It was best he stayed safe. 

You slipped out of his arms, looking back at his face to be sure he didn't stir, which he didn't. Then, you grabbed your gun from the bedside table. With your weapon in hand, you made your way out of the bedroom and towards the door. Your heart pounded in your chest as you tried to stay as silent as possible. If whoever was outside heard you, who knows what they might have done.

There was a peephole on the door that was just a little higher than eye level for you. The urge to wake Biggs up returned as you didn’t want to see who was on the other side of the door, but you shook it away. Too afraid to look out a peephole, how pathetic, you thought. Taking a deep breath and stand on your tiptoes, you glanced out the hole. It was Jessie, thank God. Putting your gun behind your back, you opened the door. 

Jessie's eyes went wide as she looked at you up and down. And then you realized: you were wearing some of his clothes, answering the door at his house. This didn't look right at all.

"You two finally hooked up?" She asked, a grin forming on her lips. 

"No, no, it's not like that!" You said defensively, "Wait, what do you mean 'finally'?"

"What's going on?" Biggs asked, making his way over to the door, his own gun held at his side 

"Woah, woah, woah," Jessie put her hands up, "Your secret's safe with me! The gun's a little much, don't ya think?" 

Biggs put his gun away, and you ushered her in before anyone could see you.

"So, you have fun last night?" She asked Biggs. He furrowed his eyebrows at her, about to ask what she meant, until he glanced at you and put the pieces together. 

"That's not what happened!" He said.

She looked him up and down, eyes settling on a spot on his shirt.

"Then why do you have a drool stain on your chest?" She smirked, pointing it out, "Checkmate."

You covered your face with your hand. Wow, this was embarrassing. To think you drooled all over your crush and your friend had to go point it out to him. She really couldn't let it go, could she? 

"I knew something was up last night. I thought you just stuck around the bar to comfort Y/N, but this," she gestured to the both of you "this was not what I had in mind at all."

"That's not what happened last night," he said again.

"Then what did happen?" She asked, folding her arms over her chest and waiting for a response.

"There's people after me, Jessie," you began, "They were at my house last night, so I stayed here."

The mischievous look in her eyes vanished, along with the matching smirk. Her eyes grew wide, staring into yours for any indication that you were making a joke. When your expression didn't change, her lips parted slightly. 

"You're kidding," she finally said, looking from you to Biggs, and then back at you again. 

"I wish I was," you admitted, "I'm serious, Jessie."

"What the hell happened?" She blurted.

You and Biggs had a seat on the couch and Jessie took a chair as you told her the story from the night before. You made sure to spare no detail, well almost no detail. You used the phrase "almost lost it," like you did with Tifa, to which Biggs corrected you and received another glare. 

Jessie listened intently to your retelling of the story, and you could tell her every thought by the look on her face. Being an actress meant she was used to making exaggerated facial expressions, many of which slipped into her day-to-day life. By the end, though, you knew she wasn't happy with you. She stared on a moment more before getting up from the chair, shifting her weight foot to foot. She was either pissed or scared, or maybe both.

"And you didn't tell any of us this?" She began, "We're your friends, Y/N, we could've helped you out!"

"It all happened so fast, I could barely even process-" you tried to BS an excuse, but you were interrupted by Jessie.

"At the bar last night, you could've told us! I promise you, all five of us would've walked you home last night. We could've handled whoever was at your door, given them all a warning not to mess with you again, but we never had that chance because you're too prideful to ask for help! I wish you'd-" 

"Could you stop berating her?" Biggs asked.

"You're not blameless here either! You had the chance to tell us and you didn't!"

"I was keeping a promise," he said calm and firm.

Jessie looked from his eyes back to you. A pang of guilt settled in her stomach as she noticed your demeanor had changed: you wouldn't look her in the eye anymore, instead focusing on the floor below you. Though she had a lot more she wanted to say, she held her tongue. 

The next few moments were tense, an uncomfortable silence settling over the three of you. Jessie stood behind the chair, turned around with her gaze settled at Bigg's kitchen. It was immaculate, she noticed for a moment, before wringing her hands in thought.

She had originally come to Biggs’ house to check up on him, since he had not come in for the meeting yet. You were next on her list, but she never expected to see the both of you here. 

Today’s meeting was important, she remembered. For today’s meeting would dictate whether or not the next phase of their plan would begin. If Barrett gave the go ahead, They would bomb the Sector 5 reactor the next day. If that was the plan, Jessie was going to break into a Shinra warehouse and steal some less volatile explosive material. She didn't want what happened in sector 1 to repeat itself this time around, and more importantly, she didn’t want any more innocent blood on her hands. 

That meant she would have to go home first and take her father's Shinra ID. She originally intended to do this with Cloud as her only help; but maybe, just maybe, You and Biggs would be safer topside tonight than in the slums. If the two of you went with her, she would at least know you were safe. 

Although she had planned a romantic adventure with the cute mercenary, she knew should couldn’t leave her friends in any danger. She had decided, then. Friends over hot guys, besides, she could still flirt with him a little while her friends were there. They'd seen her do it before.

"I assume you're going to tell the rest of the team about this," she said, her tone much more controlled this time around.

“I’ve got no other choice,” you replied.

"We should still be cleared for the mission tomorrow, seeing as this issue has nothing to do with it. But I bet you two want to get out of the slums for a little bit, take your mind off of those goons, right?"

"That would be nice," Biggs added.

"I've got an idea, I'll tell you about it after the meeting," she started, giving off one of her notorious smiles, though it didn't reach her eyes this time, "And Y/N, can I have a word with you?" She glanced over to Biggs, "In private?" 

"Why private?" He countered, "Its my house."

"Because I'm going to apologize and I don't do that very often, I don't want any witnesses." 

"Don't you think I deserve one too?" 

"Too bad, you're not getting one."

Biggs rolled his eyes, but got up anyway, walking to his room and closing the door behind him. Upon his exit, Jessie walked over to you, taking Biggs' spot on the couch. 

"I shouldn't have been so harsh," she began, placing her hands neatly in her lap, "I didn't mean to go full-Barrett on you," 

You laughed, staring down at your own lap, "You're right though."

"About what?" 

"Me being too prideful to ask for help... All my life I thought I was being strong, but maybe that’s not the case.”

Upon hearing this, Jessie put a hand on your shoulder. “It takes a lot of strength to ask for help, y'know," she said, "but things like this are different. Your safety is at risk."

"I know," 

"Besides, if something ever happened to you, me and Tifa would be outnumbered. You wouldn't want avalanche to become a sausage fest, would you?" 

You laughed. It was nice to hear her joke around like she usually did, instead of hearing her yell at you. It wasn’t very often that her anger got the best of her, and although her response today was warranted, it still took you by surprise.

"So you two didn't do anything at all last night?" She asked out of the blue, making you freeze in place. You should’ve known she’d ask about it again...

"We may have shared a bed, but that's it!" You whispered, just in case Biggs could hear you from his room. Jessie looked over her shoulder at his door before whispering back.

"What about the drool stain?" 

"You just don't give up, do you?" You breathed, "That was all that happened. We were both scared so we, well..."

"Y/N are you too embarrassed to say you cuddled up with him?" When you didn't answer, she let out an exasperated sigh, running a hand though her bangs, "You two are absolutely hopeless."

She stood up from the couch, turning to look back at the bedroom door. 

"You can come out now!" She yelled, "Besides, we gotta figure out how to get both of you to Seventh Heaven unspotted."


	4. Chapter 4

"Are you sure about this?" You asked, one hand tight against your holstered gun. 

"I checked the whole sector for weirdos and I didn't find any," Jessie replied. "Well, besides Biggs here, but you seem to be fine with him."

You laughed a little, looking up to see his reaction. Though he rolled his eyes, you could tell he still found it funny. 

"Are you completely sure?" He asked. She turned around and raised her brows.

"There's no such thing as completely sure." You knew she was right. There was no way to confirm without a doubt that you'd be safe. But she did try, and you trusted her. That didn't erase your anxiety though, as you had a death grip on Biggs' hand. Jessie took notice of this, giving you a knowing look even though you swore it was platonic. 

The three of you had just started the short journey to Seventh Heaven, where you would have to tell Barrett about everything. As much as you wanted to keep everyone out of your business, including Barrett, he had to know about this. He was the Leader, the oldest, maybe he'd know how to fix the situation. Even if he didn't offer any solutions, he was a good 300 pounds of pure muscle, not to mention his gun for an arm. He would definitely keep you safe. 

After a moment of hesitation, the three of you hit the streets. A few heads turned at the sight, filling you with dread. You, Biggs, and Jessie were all well known around the sector 7 slums because you were all part of the neighborhood watch. Still, the few eyes that followed gave you an unsettling feeling, like something was gonna go wrong. You prayed it was a false alarm.

But no, you couldn't be that lucky, because as you turned the corner towards the bar, you spotted them. Just a few feet away from the steps of the seventh heaven was the creep, along with his group of men. And by the look of their clothing, they meant trouble. As soon as you had seen them, he had locked eyes with you. 

You stopped in your tracks, something that both Jessie and Biggs did at the sight of the strange men. 

"Are those the guys?" Jessie whispered towards you, and you nodded to her. "Shit."

"Look who we have here," the creep said as he took a few steps forward; his men did the same, "I told you boys she was a looker." After he said this, his goons started shouting obscenities. 

Biggs took a step forward to block you, but you pushed him back with your elbow. This time around Biggs was not going to walk away from trouble, but you didn't want him on their bad side, too. So far, you were the only one they were after, and you wanted to keep it that way.

"Y/N!" He whispered, confused by your actions.

"Let me handle this," you whispered back.

"Just like you handled things last time, right?" You glared back at him. The nerve he had to be sassy in this circumstance...

"So she's got you henpecked, huh?" The creep turned to Biggs, "I always knew she wore the pants in the relationship." 

Biggs didn't react. He wasn't easily emasculated by cheap taunting. But he did react when the creep stepped closer, looking you up and down. A devilish smirk grazed his lips. His goons followed suit, surrounding the three of you. There was no escape now.

"She looks pretty nice from the back, too," a voice said from behind. 

This was your version of hell: a group of large, intimidating men circling you, ogling and spewing obscenities your way. You could feel your hands shaking now. One hand made its way back to the holstered gun, though it's not like you had the guts to pull it out anyway. And all of the goons seemed to have holsters of their own, which means you'd probably be dead before you ever got the courage to pull the trigger.

Biggs' hand found its way to yours again, working to steady your shaking palm. A gentle squeeze as a reminder that he was still here, and so was Jessie. You weren't alone this time. But you were still outnumbered.

"Her friend's pretty cute too," another voice said. Upon hearing this, Jessie's grip on your upper arm tightened. The fear in your veins quickly turned to fire. How dare they bring her into this...

"Leave her out of this, she didn't do anything!" You spoke up a little too loudly.

"I can speak for myself, Y/N." She replied, "Why don't you guys mess with me instead? Y/N here's such a bore anyway. You should just leave her alone."

"Y/N's right though, you didn't do anything wrong..." he trailed off, his focus coming back to you, "But you did, didn't you?" His hand reached out to touch your face, which Biggs slapped away. Just a moment later, one of the goons had him restrained.

"Don't touch her." He said, fighting the strong grip on his wrists. The creep looked at Biggs, amused. 

"I do what I want," he grinned, before grabbing your chin in his hands. Biggs struggles harder to get out of the grasp of the goon. 

All the self defense training you learned meant nothing because, now, in the moment, you were frozen. You had learned so many techniques and retaliations and yet your body stayed still. Maybe it was because all of the goons had guns. They could take you out in a second. Or worse, take out Biggs or Jessie. Yep, that was it. 

The creep's face was just centimeters away from yours now, his eyes drinking in the fear he had caused. And then you remembered what Biggs said on the train. He gets off on seeing a reaction, and you definitely were feeding his ego. But you wouldn't let him have that satisfaction any more. 

Taking a deep breath, you stared him back in the eyes. Somehow, with a strength you didn't know you had, you willed it all away. And though your mouth was dry and your heart was beating a mile a minute, he was met with a blank face. Somehow you had even silenced your greatest tell, for your hands were now still.

"What are you going to do to me?" You said, hiding behind your facade of calm. He seemed to anger at your lack of a reaction, but he quickly hid his own dissatisfaction. His hand left your face.

"Nothing yet. It's your lucky day, sweet cheeks, because me and my boys are busy today. Lookin' for a big man with a gun for an arm, you know him?" 

Your heart skipped a beat. What could they want with Barrett? Or with avalanche? 

"No," you replied just as calm as before. You really hoped your face didn't betray you. 

The man looked at you, eyes scanning for a crack in the facade. He wanted a reaction out of you, that was clear. And you were so afraid of what they could be capable of, or what their intentions were for looking in to Barrett, that you knew your face could out you in a second. But you wouldn't give him a reaction. Not today. He saw you freak out just the night before, you couldn't let that slip out again. 

"You ain't scared at all?" He asked, face coming closer to yours again. His hot breath hit your cheeks as he spoke.

"What's there to be afraid of?" You asked, tilting your head to the side. Though your heartbeat told a different story... 

"Like I said, today is your lucky day. But I can't promise you'll be so lucky next time," he said, before turning to his men, "let's go." 

The man who held Biggs' wrists behind his back finally let go, and he along with the other men returned to their original formation. The creep led his group away from the bar.

"Wait!" Jessie called to them. 

"What?" The man turned on his heels to look back at the girl, clearly annoyed that his dramatic exit was interrupted.

"What do we have to do for you to leave her alone?" 

"You can't do anything to help you friend out, this is her battle... but..." The creep lifted his brows and pressed a finger to his lips as he thought to himself. Then, he lifted his fingir from his purses lips and pointed to you, "Meet me at the Corneo mansion in sector 6 and we'll talk. Maybe make ourselves a little truce. How about it, sweet cheeks?"

"There's no way in hell!" Biggs said.

"Fine," the man grinned, "But she might wanna move. And lock her doors every night. And check the windows. Cause that's what a little bitch gets when she acts up."

And with that, the group of men walked away. You watched until they were no longer visible, somewhere blended into the crowded sector 7 streets. 

"Are you guys ok?" A voice called from behind. You turned around to see Tifa and her mercenary friend sprinting towards your direction. 

Tifa stopped when she reached you, eyes meeting yours before she looked to where the men just were. 

"Was that...” she trailed off, you nodded. 

—————

By the look of Barrett's face and the way he ran his hand over his hair, it was clear he was holding a lot back. The tension throughout the room was thick as you, Jessie, Tifa, Biggs, and even Wedge watched Barret for a response. You were fully prepared and fully expecting him to shout at you, but he just stared at the table below him, biting the inside of his cheek.

You told him everything. Not by choice, but by necessity. And of course he was angry you didn't tell him before, you knew he would be. He had the right to be. But even though you were an adult, you still felt like a child whenever he was angry with you. 

He finally looked back up to you, now biting his tongue so he wouldn’t slip and say something he didn't mean. 

"I'd really like to yell at you right now, Y/N," he began, voice a low growl. His composure confused the entire team, "But shit, if I would’ve been there with you, he'd be bedridden the rest of his life. So if I yelled at you, I'd be the biggest hypocrite on the planet."

"But I screwed up..."

"I never said you didn't. You screwed up big time. But I would've done the same," his voice returned to its normal volume.

"So then what should we do? Clearly she's not safe," Tifa leaned forward on the table, brow furrowed. 

Barrett got up from his chair, moving around the room as he thought to himself. You hoped he'd have some sort of solution for all of this. He was the leader, after all. Besides, if he didn't, what would you do? Move to another slum and live your life in fear? Or leave your life in Midgar for some peace?

He turned back to the table, placing his hands on the top of his chair. Then, he glanced between Wedge, Jessie, and Tifa.

"Which one of you wants to be hospitable tonight?" 

"Y/N and Biggs Can stay at my place. My roommates are away." Jessie replied all too eager, probably because of that plan she was talking about earlier: the one Barrett couldn’t know about.

"Ok then, It's decided. You two stay at Jessie's tonight. Tomorrow's mission will go as planned. Y/N, you’re still going with Biggs. Sneak on the train from the back like we did yesterday, and stay there the whole ride. Do the same for the trip back, and stick together at all times. Aside from tomorrow’s mission or other necessary endeavors, no getting on the trains and no going out alone. Do I make myself clear?” 

"Yes sir... but what about the next day?” you asked, thinly concealing your mounting frustration. You needed a real solution, “Or the next? What about a long-term plan?”

"We're gonna take it one day at a time for now. We know nothin' about these men yet.”

"But I can’t live like this anymore. Constantly watching my back, afraid of what might happen if they catch me. I know it won't be good...”

"You're not actually thinking 'bout meeting up with him at Corneo's place, are you?"

"I don't know. Beats sitting on my ass and waiting for them to come snatch me.”

"Absolutely not!" Biggs spoke up. 

"I didn't ask you for permission!" 

"He's right. There's no way in hell I'm letting you go there alone!"

"Someone has to. I'm not the only one he's interested in.” 

Barrett eyebrows furrowed; you had told him that they were looking for him too, but none of you knew why. It only made sense to send someone to Corneo’s place to find out. And you already had business there. 

But you knew why they didn’t want you to go, you felt that way yourself. You’d hate to walk into a trap; who knows what they’d do to you. But if you went to him, you’d be prepared. He wasn’t going to stop looking for you, and it beat getting snatched up from the street. If you met with him, the meeting would be somewhat on your terms. Too bad you couldn’t convince anyone else of that...

"Y/N," his voice now just a whisper, “don't test me today."

"But-"

"Just... We'll talk about it after tomorrow's mission. Speaking of mission, is everybody clear on what's gonna happen?"

Barrett was quickly overwhelmed with the arguments coming his way. There was Jessie and Wedge who wanted the mercenary, cloud something, to join in on this mission; they were the loudest. Then there was Biggs, who couldn't believe Barrett was even considering letting you go off to the Corneo mansion; he wasn't shouting, but he was clearly upset. And then there was Tifa. Poor Tifa couldn't get her argument across with all the commotion going on. Not that they'd listen anyway. She didn't want this mission to happen in the first place, not after what happened at Mako reactor 1. 

You stepped away from the table and headed towards the pinball machine elevator. Everyone was too busy to notice. Looking back, you felt bad for Barrett. He had to listen to everyone's arguments. But that guilt only lasted for a second; everyone had to listen to his yelling too, so the scale was even. 

"That's the price of progress, Tifa!" Barrett said once again to the woman. She was tired of hearing that same phrase or phrases like it. They were just excuses. Sure, they may be true, but still. She couldn't agree with letting people die, letting people lose their homes, their livelihoods. She cared about the planet just like anyone else did, but she didn't believe that the cost of human life was worth it. Too bad her opinions weren’t shared by the group’s leader...

She spotted you at the elevator, and headed towards the platform herself. Crossing her arms over her chest, she looked back at the group. 

"This is chaos," she said quietly. You nodded, watching as Barrett finally snapped and let the three have it.

"I need a drink.”


	5. Chapter 5

Afternoon drinking was not something you were really known for, but after all that had happened in the last 24 hours, you let yourself indulge. No, it wasn't a good coping mechanism, but you needed a little relief from the constant and paralyzing fear of someone hunting you down. It helped a bit with the guilt, too. There were a lot of things you felt guilty about...

These were supposed to be celebration drinks, you remembered. Because every time a mission was approved, you and your teammates would guzzle down beers in excitement. But that was not the same energy the bar held today. Everyone was drinking, but no one was happy. 

Jessie tried to lighten the mood, tried to bring energy to the group, but aside from her bubbly disposition, her eyes told another story. She was worried, just like everyone else, for the same reasons as everyone else. She was worried for you, for Barrett, and for the mission tomorrow. 

Even Wedge was silent. You hurt his feelings by not telling him about what happened. And no matter how many times you tried to explain to him that it wasn't personal, you didn't want to tell anyone about it, he still knew what that meant deep down. You didn't trust him. Or anybody on the team, really. He hoped that through kindness he would've gained your trust, but he was wrong. You couldn't look him in the eyes anymore, because every time you would, he'd give you the same hurt look...

You had screwed up. Not just in the sense that you instigated the man on the train (though he completely deserved the fist in the face, that much you were sure of), but that you didn't tell anyone on the team. And why? Because you were embarrassed? These were the people you were supposed to trust. You trusted them with your life during missions, so why didn't you trust them with your thoughts, feelings, and experiences?

Biggs was there when it happened, so you couldn't hide it from him if you tried, and you only told Tifa after she saw through your bs excuse. But Jessie, Barrett, and Wedge didn't get to know until they had to. Jessie had cooled down from her outburst earlier and was treating you as if nothing had happened, but deep down you knew she was still a little pissed. Barrett, on the other hand, was real pissed at you for keeping it to yourself, but he still held his tongue and you didn't know why...

Jessie took another sip of her drink, looking up at the clock on the wall. In just a few hours, she and the merc were going to hit up the Shinra warehouse. She remembered inviting you and Biggs, hoping that if she kept you near, she could somehow keep you safe. The business quarters were probably much safer than the slums, because whoever those guys were, it didn't look like the spent much time above the plate. If they did, they'd have Shinra troops called on them immediately. 

She never told you what the mission was about, though; she hoped to keep a few secrets in tact tonight. Like stealing from her own, comatose father, that was something she wasn't proud to do. 

So you, Biggs, and Cloud would be joining her. She looked over at Wedge though, he was definitely hurt that you hadn't told him. He'd probably be just as hurt if Jessie didn't invite him on this mission, too. So she decided she would let him in on it. So much for a nice, romantic evening with the local Merc...

——————

Jessie filled you, Biggs, and Wedge in on her secret mission to break into a Shinra warehouse and surprise trip to her parent's place. But something was missing from her story; you knew she was keeping something from you and the others. And just hours ago she was yelling at you for doing the same... whatever. You knew not to push it. 

She told you to meet up at the train station, something you dreaded. Not only because it was where you met the creep, but also because it would be defying Barrett's orders, and you didn't think he would hold anything back if you screwed up this time. 

The three of you arrived at the station, but weren't met with the usual chatter and smiling faces. In fact, there was no one there at all. The entire station was empty, and so, so quiet; you had never seen it like this in your life. It looked wrong. A sign plastered on the bulletin board explained that the trains were on an adjusted schedule due to threats from the "eco-terrorist group" Avalanche. You couldn't help but find it ironic. 

So the three of you had to improvise. Biggs knew a guy who rented motorbikes, and was willing to lend a few of his own for free. 

The sun was setting now, and you walked your bike back to the train station. Biggs and Wedge were on either side of you walking with their own bikes, they insisted it be that way so no creep would spot you. How lucky you were to have them, to have a team that cared about you so much they'd risk their own safety for your sake. 

Wedge had forgiven you to some extent. He was now talking to you more freely, and you were so relieved. He was such a sweet guy, it hurt to have him upset at you.

Jessie and the Merc were already at the platform waiting. She had her signature smile plastered on her face, but he looked... uncomfortable? She slung her arm around the man's neck and he flinched under her touch. Then you realized why he was so uncomfortable.

"Hey guys!" She greeted with a wave.

"Tough break. They changed the times. Last train's already left," Biggs said, "Which is why we borrowed these bikes."

"Only 3? Looks like we're gonna have to share." Jessie glanced at cloud, who looked away from her and crossed his arms. 

"So, who's riding with who?" Biggs asked. 

"Me and SOLDIER-boy can share one," Jessie said with a smirk, cloud just sighed. 

"So there's two bikes left and three of us," you added.

"Rock paper scissors?" Wedge suggested. You laughed and Biggs shook his head at the guy, but the both of you agreed. So the three of you got ready: hands in position.

"Rock, Paper, Scissors, Shoot!" 

A grin formed on you lips when you won; you would get a bike all to yourself. 

"C'mon, two out of three!" Biggs asked, a hopeful look in his eye. Did he really want to ride alone that badly? Unless he wanted to ride with you... No, that couldn't be it. 

"No. I won fair and square." 

Biggs' eyes lingered on yours a second longer, before he smiled and put a hand on Wedge's shoulder, "Guess I'm stuck with this guy."

"Hey! Don't say it like it's a bad thing!" Wedge said. Everybody laughed. Well, except Cloud. 

——————

Your heart began to race as your bike picked up speed, and you couldn't help but smile. The rush, the wind through you hair, the freedom: it was intoxicating. You pushed the throttle harder, speeding up and and bumping over the train tracks. This was what it felt like to be truly liberated. In this moment, the creep and his goons couldn't get to you. They couldn't even try. You were going too fast, leaving your fear and guilt in the dust. You felt alive. 

Something in you wanted to go faster, farther, but you couldn't just ditch your team. That wasn't how teams worked. So you reluctantly stayed in between both Wedge and Biggs and Jessie and Cloud as the five of you came to your first ID scan. Thanks to Jessie, your new ID's were impeccable. There was nothing to worry about. 

The first ID scan was a success, just as all of you expected. The second and third scans yielded similar results. Then came the fourth ID scan. It was very uncommon to have a fourth scan, but they must have implemented it because of the bombing. This one wasn't so successful. And as soon as you had passed the threshold, security had sent in people after you.

"We've got company!" Jessie said, and just like that another bike flew past your own. A Shinra troop manned the vehicle, blaster in hand. 

The mercenary made quick work of the troop, but security wouldn't let up that easily. More bikes joined you on the tracks, aiming to kill. 

Cloud was somehow fighting multiple troops at a time. But there was one more behind you, speeding up so he could take you out. Pulling out your gun, you aimed at the troop's tire and pulled the trigger. 

You were always a good shot, but not now, not when you needed it the most. Instead of piercing the tire and ejecting the man from his vehicle, you missed. It must have been the driving, you thought.

Your eyes widened; he was lining up his shot now. On pure instinct, you ducked your head and swerved. Another gunshot rang out, but it never whistled past your head. In fact, it wasn't in your direction at all. 

You turned around, watching the man's slumped body and fallen bike become smaller in the growing distance. Just behind you and to the right was Wedge and Biggs. Wedge couldn't have done it, his hands were steady against the handles. But Biggs still had his pistol in his hand. Your eyes met his. 

"Thanks," you shouted to him. He just nodded back at you. And though you just narrowly escaped death, your mind was on the man who saved you instead. You could always count on him to have your back. That stupid little crush wanted to make its comeback, but you pushed those thoughts away. Now was not the time. In fact, there would never be a right time. Not when you were risking your life everyday. 

Working with avalanche, you had quite a few near-death experiences. They happened often enough that it didn't really affect you anymore. It was just a hazard of the job, something that you had to accept in order to do the work you were passionate about. But if you were so used to defying death, then why were the creep and his men so scary? 

You came upon the realization that death might be the endgame, but what that man wanted to do to you was much worse than death. You had prepared for death, but you never prepared for that. And you only prepared to die on certain terms: if it was necessary for the survival of another team member or the mission itself, not because of some stupid thing you did on a train. 

You shook those thoughts away, too, instead, focusing on the moment. The wind in your hair, the freedom of the tracks, and... more troops? What else did you expect? 

Cloud worked to get rid of those men. And you, determined to help, quickly got the hang of shooting while on a moving vehicle. One by one, the troops fell from their bikes. Surely this would be on the news tomorrow morning: Gunfight on the tracks. Or if you weren't so lucky, the headline might read: Shinra takes down eco-terrorists on the tracks. 

From behind, reinforcements were moving in on you. Based on the red of their helmets, they were not basic troops. Security was sending in bigger dogs now... 

"A-Team's here," Cloud shouted. 

"We're not screwed, are we?" Wedge asked. Cloud didn't answer him, instead focusing on knocking the troops off of their bikes. And as soon as they were down, two new troops replaced them.

This new pair's strategy was to surround and attack. They went to both sides of Cloud and Jessie, believing it put them at an advantage.  
But cloud, being a former soldier, wouldn't be bested that easily. He held his sword out directly in front of him, confusing both troops, before spinning the bike and knocking them both out in one fluid motion. 

For a little while the ride was free of unwanted guests, but only a little while. These next guests didn't come on wheels, instead the flew past your heads and all around your vehicles. 

"Drones!" Jessie yelled.

These were harder to shoot, you realized, since they were so much smaller and quicker than troops on bikes. But cloud was taking care of most of them. Thank God he was here. 

And then there were drones and troops. Both enemies were aiming to kill, and you didn't know which ones were of bigger concern. Biggs and Cloud seemed to be taking care of the drones, so you turned around and shot out some more tires. This got rid of a few of them. But then the rest just... stopped? They had skidded to a halt behind you, retreating back to wherever they came from.

Turning around, you helped cloud and Biggs take down the rest of the drones. Looking around one last time, there was nothing trailing you. Something about that didn't seem right. Shinra never played like that.

The true night sky was coming into view, something you never saw very often. Finally, you made it topside. You looked up at the sparkling stars above, their light swirling through the night and blending into different shades of blue with the night sky. And for a moment, you forgot about it all. Avalanche, mako, the reactors, the creep; they were all just distant memories. Right now you were safe. 

Too bad that peace didn't last...


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took a so long! I’m hoping to post a chapter at least once a week, but we’ll see if that works out...

The sound of a revving engine could be heard from behind, as well as a maniacal laughter. It grounded you back into the present reality; a reality where you weren't safe and neither was your team. 

You hesitated, taking a deep breath before looking behind. This new threat didn’t look like any typical Shinra troop, for troops were stripped of their identities and forced to wear the same uniforms. But this man was different. He wasn’t wearing one of those ugly helmets or uniforms, and his bike wasn’t typical either. Instead, the man wore his hair in a long mullet with the front slicked back. His outfit still seemed military-grade but personalized. And to top it all off, he rode a vibrant red bike. He held his sword out in front of him, size comparable to cloud’s buster sword. Could be be another soldier? 

You stared a second too long, for he met eyes with you and sent a wink. You turned back around and sped up. Please, not another weirdo.

"Who's that?" Jessie asked. 

"A SOLDIER," Cloud answered her. You were correct, then. 

You pulled out your gun, ready to take out the man's tires and send him flying off the back of his bike just like you did with some of the previous troops. As you turned, though, he sped past you. 

"Well, hello!" The man greeted your group, a sickening inflection to his voice. 

"Who's this?" Biggs asked.

"Too quick for the eye, you cross him, you die!" The man replied. Oh, he was definitely a weirdo. He turned his head to look back at Cloud, "Now, mind if I cut in?"

He waited just a moment for an answer, and upon not receiving one, answered the question himself.

"Splendid, I've been looking for a new dance partner!" 

The man spun his bike backwards and with the swing of his sword sent some sort of long-range attack your way. Whatever projectiles his sword had just formed, they mimicked beams of light. They were surely from whatever materia he had equipped, but you couldn’t tell which one.

Cloud swerved them effortlessly. You and Wedge: not so much. You had slid past one at the last second, and you could feel the white-hot warmth pass so close to your face. 

"Private party, huh? That's fine. I'll settle for a race then. Just one." 

"You talking to me?" Cloud asked.

"I most certainly am," the man said, his smirk could be heard in his words. 

"Then no."

"Ah, so terribly sorry! Your words fail to reach my ears, sluggish and slow as they are!" 

Yes, the man was a threat, but it was hard to see him that way since he was so... peculiar. He knew his was around both a motorcycle and a sword, surely he had many fatal tricks up his sleeve, and yet you couldn't help but cringe at everything he had to say. He took a real interest in Cloud, you noticed, probably because he recognized him as another soldier. You hoped Cloud would hurry up and take him out.

"What's this guys deal?" Jessie asked.

"The lady's curiosity has been peaked!" He replied, "My name is Roche, but you can address me by the more accurate appellation: Speed Demon." 

"Heard that, huh?" 

Roche laughed, "My ears are attuned to the feminine voice!"

You looked over to Jessie, who shared the same expressions as you: shock, discomfort, a little disgust. So he was a creep, too. Great. 

"Ewww," slipped out of your mouth before you could stop it. You hoped he didn't hear. 

"Ugh, this guy is the worst!" Jessie seemed to agree with you. 

Upon hearing that, Roche sent more light projectiles back towards your group, you dodged again, slightly smoother this time. Cloud dodged effortlessly just like before, and sent his own flying attack to the man.

"Yes, this is the contest I've been waiting for!" 

Cloud caught up to him, readying the buster sword. Upon seeing this, Roche smiled and readied his own weapon. With one strike, cloud had become the catalyst of their sword fight. Sparks flew as their swords scraped against each other, the clinks of metal deafening. 

Then Roche sped up again, creating distance between him and using his long-range light attacks. These ones were only focused on cloud; he couldn't dogde them. Instead, he held up the buster sword as a makeshift shield. The force of the attack made cloud's bike shake as the light splintered off of his blade. 

Roche has completely forgotten about you, Wedge, and Biggs. His focus was on Cloud and Cloud alone. Maybe because he was a SOLDIER? You didn’t know for sure. But since he was busy, it meant that meant the three of you were safe from those long range attacks. 

Cloud sped up to meet Roche, sword ready to take him out. A maniacal laughter bubbled from Roche's chest as their swords met again. It must have been the thrill of danger or rush from speed that had him so giddy. Maybe he got off on it or something... But if he was fighting with cloud, he was gambling with his life. You hadn't known the mercenary that long, but he could handle a sword; that was abundantly clear. 

You worried for Jessie, though, she was caught in the middle of it all. You hoped she hadn't gotten hurt. If she got hurt on Cloud's watch, you'd tear him a new one. But she was probably fine, she could handle her own. Besides, she had her own sub-machine gun. Wait, why wasn't she helping cloud using her gun? 

Wait, why weren't YOU helping cloud and using your gun? Roche was distracted, you could easily speed up and take out his tires or something.

So that's what you did. As you sped towards them, you noticed Roche's demeanor. He was slouched, breathing heavily and holding onto his bike. Maybe cloud didn't need any help after all. You hand didn't let up on the throttle, though. 

"You had enough?" Cloud asked.

"Don't be absurd," Roche looked up, flashing a nasty smile, "As if I could ever grow tired of your company." You were beside him now, aiming your gun at his front tire. Before you could shoot, though, he turned to look at you. 

"I really hate to do this, but you’re being awfully naughty.” He said, same devious inflection as before.

And then, before you even had a chance to think, he had knocked you off your bike with his sword.

"Y/N!" Jessie yelled. 

One second you were in control of the situation, in control of your bike, and the next, you were headed towards the wall. The first part of your body to make impact with the wall was your hip, nerves igniting like fire as the rest of you ungracefully met with the wall. 

For a moment, you couldn't process anything. The white-hot pain in your hip and shock of the moment completely shut down your mind. But then you opened your eyes, and you saw the sky again. Those swirling blues, you wished you could look at it forever... 

"Y/N!" A voice called, it was Biggs. Wedge had thrown a U-Turn as soon as he saw you get knocked off the bike. 

Your awareness came back to your body, mind processing what had just happened. You were thrown off of a motorcycle, and now you lay on the ground. Your hip hurt like hell, and you were sure you had a few scrapes as well. You could feel them burning...

"Y/N!" Biggs jumped off the back of the bike and ran towards you, kneeling down by your side. He glanced up and down your body, looking for any sign of injury. And then he looked into your eyes, “Are you ok?” 

The words met your ears, but you couldn’t seem to form a response. That was until you heard more bikes, coming in as backup for Roche. It tore you from your daze, and with your hands you pushed your torso up from the ground. Biggs looked towards the source of the sound, noticing how quickly it was getting louder.

“Im fine,” you said, panicked, “We gotta go!” 

He jumped up, lifting you off the ground too, before checking to see if you could stand. Although your hip still hurt, it wasn’t enough to keep you from walking. Once he had established that you were actually ok, he grabbed your wrist and ran for you bike. It was a good couple yards from where you had landed. He lifted it up from the ground, cranking the throttle to see if it still worked. A sigh of relief escaped his lips when it revved to life. He took the front, and you hopped onto the back.

"Hold on," he said before taking off. And you did, you held on for your life. Your hands dug into the fabric of his shirt and your face pressed against his back, breathing in that familiar scent in a futile attempt to calm yourself down. It wasn't helping very much on its own, but the warmth of his body seemed to aid it in calming your breathing.

He sped across the tracks, trying to catch up with the others and avoid those troops. The rush that riding a motorbike once gave you had left, being replaced by dread and fear. How could you have possibly enjoyed this before?  
But it was Biggs, he knew what he was doing, you reminded yourself. You trusted him.  
Still, you didn't dare look back up. 

Eventually you both reached your friends; Cloud had just beat Roche and then quickly took out the troops trailing you and Biggs. And that was the end of the danger, for now at least. 

"Y/N, you ok?" Jessie asked, and you turned to look at her for a moment and nodded, which was a mistake, as you immediately got anxious noticing how fast you were going. 

The rest of the ride was done so in silence. It didn't take long to get to Jessie's stop. You finally felt the bike slowing down, which you were grateful for, and eventually it came to a full stop. You unlatched from Biggs' back before anyone could see how tightly you held onto him. 

He got off of the bike first, turning around to help you up before thoroughly checking for injuries. Jessie and Wedge approached you, too. The mercenary watched the scene from a few feet away, his arms crossed. Wedge kept some distance. Biggs and Jessie, however, didn't seem to take personal space into consideration. You understood they were worried, but you felt suffocated by their gazes and proximity. 

"You didn't hit your head, did you?" He asked, taking your face in his hands and turning it to the sides to check for any injury. You swatted his hands away, hoping he didn't see your red face. 

"No, Just my hip, but I think it'll be ok." 

"Are you sure?" Jessie asked, placing her hand on the uninsured hip to see if it was the one. You stopped her before she touched your other hip.

"Well, I'm standing on it right now, so I think so," you couldn't help the attitude seeping into your tone. You were just in a traumatizing accident, heavily embarrassed because of it, and now being smothered by your friends. Not to mention everything that happened that morning and the day before. The past 48 hours have been hell...

"Watch the 'tude, missy," Jessie said to you, and you had to bite the inside of your cheeks and take a deep breath to keep from snapping. A chuckle escaped Biggs' chest, he must have seen your reaction. His laugh seemed to ease some of the forming tension.

"My mom's got stuff to patch you up," Jessie said, taking you arm into her hands as she looked at your scrapes, "But how are we gonna explain this to her?”

"I tripped?" You suggested. 

"That'll work. She might pry, though, so you better get your story straight now." 

After you assured them that you were fine and that you could walk, the five of you headed out into the sector 7 business quarters. You really hoped they hadn't noticed your slight limp... it couldn't be too noticeable. After the initial impact of your hip against the concrete wall, the pain died down to a manageable ache. And though you knew it wasn't all that serious, you knew there would be a big, purple bruise there tomorrow. 

The business quarters were immaculately clean, with real roads and concrete instead of the dirt grounds of the slums. There was a car in every driveway; a luxury that no one under the plate had, for there weren't even streets to drive them on. The differences between the slums and topside were so astounding that you, biggs, Wedge, and even Cloud had to look around in amazement. Jessie was used to it, though. 

Biggs stopped in his tracks to stand in front of a pro-Shinra sign, crossing his arms as he read the words; they were all lies. You stopped by it too, cringing at the propaganda.

"Disgusting," you said quietly, and he hummed in agreement. There was a moments pause as you both glanced closer at the sign, taking in the pictures and their irony. It was a moments pause made much longer because you were both painfully aware of it. 

"So... how are you holding up?" He asked, turning back to you. 

"What?" You looked up at him.

"Emotionally, I mean. How are you holding up?" You glanced at him for a second, taken aback by the question.

"Well, uhh... I just got thrown off of a motorbike. I have a gang after me. Could be better," you averted your gaze, looking to the street lamp instead, "It's been a hectic 48 hours..."

“Tell me about it.”

“It just feels like its never gonna end.” 

"Look," he began, and you looked him in the eyes, "It's a lot right now, I know. But we're gonna get through it together, ok? This will all pass." 

Your heartbeat quickened, his kindness was fueling that stupid little crush of yours. 

"We better head back to Jessie," you said. So the both of you turned to walk away. Then he took your hand in his own and squeezed. How could he be this kind, this caring? And why was he so dead set on not letting you suffer alone? You had to ask. You took a deep breath. "Why are you putting up with this? With all the trouble I've caused us both recently?" 

"Because I-," he stopped himself, and instead chose to rephrase whatever he was about to say, "Because that's what friends do... Let's go, can't keep Jessie waiting."

So the two of you walked towards Jessie's childhood home, hand in hand, like friends do. Just friends. But you wondered what he was about to say just a moment ago...

"Took you two long enough!" She said, hands on her hips. Wedge stood beside her, and Cloud was... leaning on the left side of the house? Was he not invited in? Knowing him, he probably didn’t want to go in, so you didn’t mention it.

As you two approached, Jessie turned around and walked up to the house. She stopped just steps away from the front door. Turning around, she made eye contact with you and Biggs.

"Just remember, my mom thinks me and you are dating," she said to Biggs, before looking back at you, "So none of that sexual tension stuff, ok?"

Your heart skipped a beat when she said that, and you took your hand out of his grasp. "What do you mean?" 

"Don't act dumb," she rolled her eyes at you before knocking on the door.

You took a step away from Biggs, crossing your arms and looking in the other direction. His gaze hit the concrete below him, hand rubbing the back of his neck.

“But there’s nothing between us,” Biggs said. Causing Jessie and Wedge to laugh.

“Whatever you say,” Wedge replied.

The front door swung open, revealing Jessie's shocked mother. Her expression changed to a smile as soon as she laid eyes on her daughter. You felt sorry for Jessie, you really did. Because she had to live a double life, lying to her ever-supporting mother who was blissfully unaware of Shinra's sins. 

"Jessie, what a surprise!" She said, looking from her daughter to the many other faces on the other side of the doorframe, "And you brought your friends! Here, come inside!"


	7. Chapter 7

You hissed as Jessie wiped one of your scraped arms with a pad of alcohol. The two of you were in the bathroom of her mother’s house as she worked to clean up your wounds.

"Don't be such a baby," she whispered, and for a moment you stood there, staring at her. She really had the nerve... But then she looked up at you, signature smirk revealing that she was just playing, "Bet you wish someone else was cleaning you up instead."

"Jessie..." you warned. She was right, though, and it could've been that way too if she hadn't gotten in the way of it. Biggs had offered to clean you up, but Jessie insisted she do it instead of him. You understood why, though. Biggs was her fake boyfriend, part of her cover story for her mom, and if either of you got too close to each other, it would be an obvious lie.

"Tell me I'm wrong." She said. You couldn't, but you played it off with an exasperated sigh and a roll of the eyes.

There was a lull in the mostly one-sided conversation, as Jessie concentrated on wrapping bandages around your arm. As she finished one arm, she moved to tend to the other. And when she was done with that, she looked at you expectantly, hands on her hips. When you expressed confusion, she tilted her head. 

"You're welcome," she said, and you got the hint.

"Thanks, Jessie," you laughed. 

"Now, why don't you let me look at your hip?" She said, smacking it with her palm. It took the breath out of your lungs.

"Son of a-” you blurted out in pain, covering your mouth before you finished the sentiment. Hopefully no one heard that... but you couldn’t focus on it anyway, because the sharp pain in your side had put you into a cold sweat. You tried to control your shallow breathing as you waited for it to pass. There was a knock on the bathroom door. 

"You two ok in there?" A voice asked, it was Biggs. Then they all must have heard it, how embarrassing...

"We're just fine!" She reassured through the door. Then she turned back to you, whispering, "why didn't you tell me it was that bad!" 

"Because I didn't think you were going to slap it!” you whispered back, "Besides, I can walk on it fine, it just hurts to touch."

She pulled the side of your pants down. 

"Jessie!" You scolded her, even though she only exposed your hip. She ignored you, instead focusing on your injury. You looked down at it for the first time, and just like you expected, it was a nice shade of red. It was too early to be bruised, but you fully expected the skin to appear purple and black tomorrow. 

"You really did get hurt," she said, poking and prodding gently to see when you flinched, and you swatted her hands away because those pokes and prods still really hurt. "You're lucky nothing got broken."

"Hardly call myself lucky. Not recently, at least."

"You may not realize it, but you're luckier than you think," She held your gaze, a serious expression on her face instead of the usual devious one, "Well, I've done all I can. Let’s go get some pizza, shall we?" 

Both of you exited the bathroom and were met with the eyes of Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie's mother. Man, this felt awkward. 

"I see you're all cleaned up, Y/N," Jessie's mother said from the kitchen, "I can't believe you got all those scrapes from when you tripped!" 

"I know, I can't believe it either... Just my luck I guess."

"So, how did you trip anyway?" She asked, curious.

"Well, uh... I was distracted,” you began, searching for the second half of your excuse. Jessie was right, you should’ve had your story straight before you got here, “You see, I was uhh... looking up at the stars, because they were so beautiful and I never get to them down in the slums. And then as I was walking, I tripped over the curb."

"Y/N's such a klutz!" Jessie teased, her natural acting ability really helping make the story believable.

"Yeah, classic Y/N!" Wedge joined in with a laugh. Though when he spoke, it wasn't as believable as Jessie. She then took the chair across from Biggs, and you sat beside her.

"Well I'm just glad you're ok," Mrs. Rasberry said, taking the pizza out from the oven and onto a tray to serve, which she brought over to the table. As soon as it hit the wooden table, wedge had taken a few slices for himself. Then Jessie took a slice, Biggs took two, and finally you grabbed one for yourself. 

"So Jessie, how's practice going?" Her mother asked.

"It's... going," she replied, seemingly more uncomfortable to lie about her own life than she was about your injury earlier. You understood, though. She was living a double life and she felt guilty keeping it from her mother. 

"You get so fixated, you lose sight of things," her mother replied, "That's why I'm glad you have a rock like Biggs." 

Upon hearing this, both Jessie and Biggs stiffened up. For a fake couple, they weren't very convincing. But it was part of her cover story, and it was too late to change that. 

"Always there, taking up space," Jessie said. You nearly choked on your food, quickly swallowing before the laughter bubbled up from your chest. 

"Hey!" Biggs said, causing the others to laugh. He raised his eyebrows up at Jessie, who just smirked at him. And then he looked to you, a small smile of his own forming even when he tried to look offended. 

"Oh, raised on praise I see?" Mrs. Rasberry laughed. 

"So you're where she gets it from!" He joked, and she smiled up at him, before moving towards the oven for the second pizza. 

One she took the second one out of the oven, she placed in on a tray to serve again, setting it on the table in front of you. There was still a slice left from the first pizza, until Wedge grabbed it for himself. Mrs. Rasberry then took the newly-empty tray to the kitchen, setting it in the sink. 

"So Wedge, is there anybody special in your life? Surely such a sweet boy would have a date by now," She said, smiling at him as he grew nervous. Biggs and Jessie watched on in amusement.

"I- Uh..." he scrambled to look for something, anything to change the subject, "The legendary Midgar special is fantastic as always, Missus R!" 

She laughed, "I always keep extra ingredients on hand for you! But that doesn't answer my question..." 

"You keep extra ingredients for me? Aww, wow! I feel like part of the family!" He still would not address her question.

"Yeah, like the dog," Biggs joked, and you glared at him. He liked to tease Wedge, you knew this, but sometimes he could be a little harsh. Still funny, but harsh.

"Ok, Wedge," Mrs. Rasberry gave him a knowing look and smile, "I won't pry any further." 

He took a sigh of relief, grabbing another slice of pizza and taking a bite. 

"So Y/N, do you have anybody special yet? With a girl as pretty as you, I wouldn’t be surprised if you had men chasing you down.”

A palpable tension grew from the table. Biggs stopped just before taking another bite of pizza, placing the slice back down onto the plate. After a moment of pure shock, Wedge dug even deeper into his own pizza in order to look less suspicious. And you were stuck, staring frozen into Mr. Rasberry's eyes as she waited your reply, a reply you couldn't muster.

"You have no idea," Jessie replied, saving you from her own mother's kind yet torturous eyes. You'd have to thank her for that, because if she didn't step in, you'd be stuck in the eternal staring contest.

"Well, give me some details! Is there any man you're currently interested in?" 

You knew where Jessie got the prying from. And for a moment, it really did feel like you had a mother, but not in the glamorous way you'd imagined. 

"Actually there is a special man in her life," Jessie replied before you had a chance. She was one of your best friends, but sometimes she could really get on your nerves. She knew who you liked, so how did she expect you to answer that? Say you had a crush on her fake boyfriend, in front of him? She really didn’t think this one through. And there you were, facing the consequences for her big mouth, frozen again in her mother's stare. 

"Well? Aren't you going to give me a few details?" Her mother spoke melodically, "What's the man's name?" 

"I-Uh..." you spluttered our, for you were NOT prepared for this situation. But you had to say something, or else stare in those brown eyes for eternity. So you blurred out the first name that came to mind, "Barrett. His name's Barrett."

And as soon as it left your mouth, you regretted it. Biggs choked on a sip of water, causing Mrs. Rasberry to come to his aid although he swore between coughs he was fine. 

Once Mrs. Rasberry returned to her place in the kitchen, the tension still remained. Nobody was expecting you to use that name, and by the looks on the faces, nobody could handle it either. 

Jessie, a proud actress, took deep breaths to keep herself from cracking. And when that began to fail, she bit the inside of her cheeks to stop the laughter that tried so hard to come out. Wedge, once again, used the food in front of him in order to keep from looking suspicious. And Biggs just stared at the wall across from him, eyebrows raised the slightest bit, fighting down a grin. You were NEVER going to live this down. 

The conversation quickly turned away from your love life and back to something more casual, where you weren’t the center of attention. You were so grateful to escape Mrs. Rasberry's strong gaze. Just like her daughter, she was pretty intense. You took a few more bites of pizza, finally able to enjoy the woman's meal. She was a really good cook, something which she had passed on to Jessie as well. Still, Jessie’s pizzas had nothing on her mother’s.

"When are you going to give up on the Gold Saucer? How long has it been since you even performed?" Jessie's mother asked out of the blue. It must have been weighing on her for a little while now.

"A lot of people really rely on Jessie," Wedge said, hoping to satisfy Mrs. Rasberry with his excuse. 

"As a stagehand though, right? You can be one of those anywhere. So why not come home and get a job at the sector eight theater?" 

"Uhhh, I'll think about it," Jessie replied, though not very convincingly. "Y'know, I’d really love to stay and chat but we gotta go," 

"So soon?" Her mother replied. 

"Yeah, well we hadn't even planned on dropping by, but Wedge wanted some of your famous pizza." 

"And it was so good!" He added, licking a drop of sauce from his finger.

"Sure I can't tempt you with some more?" 

"Maybe Just a couple slices, Mrs. R,"

"Wedge!" Jessie and Biggs shouted, somehow in unison. 

"Hey!" He said defensively, "I'm doing it for you guys! You don't want me going to work on an empty stomach, do you?"

After a long and excruciating goodbye to Jessie's mother, the three of you walked outside. Cloud stood in front of the house, leaning against the fence with his arms crossed. Did Jessie really just make him wait outside? She couldn't have. Surely she had him do something. 

"So, Barrett, huh?" Jessie asked, devious grin adorning her face. The others laughed. 

"Didn't know you had a thing for the big boss man," Biggs teased. Cloud must've heard that, cause he gave you a strange look from afar. Great, now the mercenary thought you were thirsting after your boss.

"Don't any of you dare bring this up to him!" 

They just laughed again. But this time Cloud came to your aid, handing Jessie a card of some sort and effectively changing the topic. While you knew he didn’t mean to help you, he probably just wanted to get this whole mission over with, you appreciated his actions.

"This it?" He asked. She took the card from him and stared for a moment in the direction of the warehouse. Then she turned around to face her group, holding up the plastic card, "I'm gonna use this to sneak into the 7-6 Annex."

You nearly gasped when you saw what was in her hands: her father's Shinra ID. So that's what Cloud must've been doing, stealing from Jessie's comatose father for her. No wonder she wanted to keep it a secret, that was really messed up. 

But you couldn't blame her. You knew she felt much worse about it than she let on. She had the hardest time in avalanche, going against everyone she loved for the cause she cared so deeply about. Keeping secrets from her mother, stealing from her own father, all to either save him or to avenge him. Only time would tell which one. 

Biggs eyes widened as he saw the card, too, finally putting the pieces together. Yes, it was screwed up, but he didn't want to dwell on it. She was doing it for her father, for the planet. So in the end, it would be worth it. 

"Alright, let's get to it!" He said.

"Sorry, but you're staying outside." She told him, "Only I know what to steal from where, do it's gotta be me who goes in."

"So... we came all this way just to eat pizza?" 

"You think I'd let you off that easy? You're gonna earn every slice helping Cloud!"


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter took so long! I’ll try to post every Saturday at least.

"Raise hell," was what Jessie said. A simple, yet effective description of your current mission. Thing is, your team had never been told to raise hell before. Usually, you were told the opposite. In all of your previous missions, it was imperative to not raise hell or else get caught and ruin the mission or worse, lose your life. This was going to be interesting.

The four of you crept around the corner, staring out at the security checkpoint that lay directly in front of you. Something was off about the scene... 

"Where are the guards?" Cloud asked. He was right, there wasn't a soul in sight. Even the guard booths appeared empty. Definitely a red flag. 

From there the group scurried towards the guard booth, heads ducked just in case there was a troop they had missed. You and your friends crouched against the wall, just below the window and out of sight. Wedge was the first to peer into the booth. 

He let out a small scream, and you slapped your hand over his mouth. Cloud grabbed the boy by the wrist and yanked him out of sight. So much for being subtle... But if there were someone outside, they would've been provoked by Wedge's scream. The seconds slipped by painfully slow as your group waited to see if anyone would come looking for the source of the sound, no one did. You let out a breath you didn't realize you were holding, hand falling away from Wedge's mouth. 

Biggs looked inside the guard booth himself, noticing the only Shinra troop was either dead or unconscious on the floor. He ducked back down quick. 

"Looks like someone beat us here," he said, voice a low growl.

"And I don't think it was Jessie!" Wedge added. Biggs shook his head.

"This had better not get in the way of our plans..." 

Cloud slowly stood up, glancing around for any sign of life before looking down at the three people below him.

"It won't," he said simply. 

"And you're sure about that?" You asked, scanning your surroundings as you stood up to his level. Once you were completely content that no one was around, you crossed your arms and stared up at the SOLDIER. He only nodded, and you studied his face, unable to read him. "Then let's go." 

Biggs noticed your extended glance at the mercenary, and as the four of you moved to your next position, he made sure to slide between you and Cloud. 

You couldn't help but notice his proximity as well as the brush of his hand against yours as the two of you walked side-by-side. You wondered if he noticed too. His hand was so close to yours, you could just grab it if you wanted... You mentally slapped yourself, now was not the time or place for a stupid crush. 

"Don't see anyone here, what the hell happened?" Biggs asked, taking another glance at his surroundings. The usually heavily-guarded security entrance was lifeless. It was and eerie sight, which he couldn't seem to get over. Something was wrong, and the fact that he didn't know what it was only made his concern grow. 

"Jessie's supposed to circling 'round back, right?" Wedge asked, worry lacing his tone. You nodded to him. 

As you leaned against the wall that stood just before the warehouse gate, you tried to ready yourself for what would happen next. Sure, there weren't any guards outside the building, but there was no way that would ring true on the inside. There were too many valuable thing in that warehouse, so Shinra probably had a whole militia in there to keep it all safe. As soon as Cloud walked into those gates, all hell would break loose. Just like Jessie wanted. 

Biggs went over the plan one last time: The three of you would scale the building to reach a vantage point while Cloud walked through the front. Then, the three of you would use the vantage point to help him out and watch his back. As Biggs explained this, you noticed Cloud's eyes glaze over in contemplation. He wasn't thinking about the mission, though; there was something else plaguing the merc's mind. 

Biggs finished speaking, and Cloud still looked shellshocked. His gaze hadn't faltered from the sky in quite a while, which both Biggs and Wedge noticed. 

"Cloud?" you asked; he didn't respond. You slowly placed your hand on his shoulder, and he jolted at the contact. You gasped and you pulled your hand away. His gaze met yours, eyes fiery and filled with... fear? Confusion? "You okay?" 

He hesitated, glancing at you once more before calming down and returning to his typical stoic demeanor. 

"Yeah,"

Just as he spoke, a flare whirred into the sky; Jessie's signal for the plan to commence. So you, Biggs, and Wedge scaled the side of the building, reaching a second floor balcony that ran all the way around the inner courtyard of the warehouse. Cloud stepped through the main gate, and as he did, a few Shinra guards spotted him.

He slashed his way through the troops, effectively causing a stir, which only lead to the dispatch of more troops. You tried your best to make his job easier by taking out a few from your vantage point, as did Biggs and Wedge, but for the most part it looked like Cloud could handle himself. You would expect no less from a former SOLDIER 1st class. But you couldn't forget that look in his eyes... what could possibly be going on in that boy's head?

"Unauthorized intruders in 7-6 annex. All units: proceed to location and neutralize targets."

The automated voice dragged you back into reality, the reality where you had to raise as much hell as possible. All the missions you've been on in the past, you were told to do the exact opposite. Stay as quiet as you can, Dont let anyone see you, if you get caught, you die. So hearing that stupid automated message set off so many alarms in your head. You had to remind yourself that it was gonna be ok, Cloud was the one taking the brunt of it anyway (which he was perfectly capable of handling). You took a deep breath to calm your nerves and keep your hands from shaking. It would be really hard to shoot Shinra troops with shaky hands. 

There was a slap on your shoulder, you turned your head to see who it was. You met eyes with Biggs, a smile on his face and and a knowing look in his eyes. He felt the same way, you could tell. 

"Showtime. We can do this." He said, you smiled up at him. And then the two of you resumed helping Cloud. 

You stuck close to Biggs for the most part; because of the safety his presence always provided and that stupid little crush, it had become a subconscious habit. Jessie often mocked you for it, and Wedge and Tifa would always raise a brow. But they weren't here right now, and Wedge was too busy to judge you.

All was going according to plan, until it wasn't. You knew there were going to be troops, your group could handle troops, but there was more up the company's sleeve than just a few inexperienced guys with guns. They were Midgar's biggest technology and weapons manufacturer, so you should've expected to see something of that sort. When it happened, though, you were still surprised. 

The platform you stood on started shaking, no, vibrating, and you instinctively grabbed at Biggs' bicep. The two of you looked around in confusion, trying to figure out why the ground was shaking below you. And then you saw it. Just a few feet away, a turret rose from its hiding place within the platform. There wasn't just one, but many spaced out across the balcony.

"Oh, you gotta be shitting me!" Biggs said.

As soon as they ascended from the ground, a storm of bullets were coming Cloud's way. There must be some way to help him, you thought. You looked at the turret, maybe there was a power button on it or something? Probably not, though you did check. Then you realized something: they weren't attached to the platform. With enough force, you could push them off. So that's what you did, you began pushing, only to realize you didn't have the strength to push them down alone. 

"Help me out!" You called to Biggs, and he did so. As soon as he joined in, the turret fell from the platform and bust into a million pieces below. 

Wedge watched from across the courtyard and began doing the same with the turrets on his side. Pretty soon, the three of you had taken most of them down.

"Goodbye," Biggs sighed, he had just pushed the last turret from the platform, which he insisted he do alone, and put his hand on his hips, catching a breath as he watched it shatter on the ground, "And good riddance." 

Just as it seemed all of Cloud's threats had been neutralized, a loud growling and the sound of a gate opening interrupted the moment's peace. They just had to let out the dogs... Shinra's guard dogs weren't like normal dog. No, they were genetically enhanced and the most viscous animals you had ever encountered. They could rip a man in half. And cloud was facing an entire pack of them. 

There were so many hounds, more than you ever expected, all growling and snarling. You questioned Cloud's ability to take them all on at once. Though you've seen him accomplish crazy things, there was a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach. 

Across the platform, Wedge saw the situation unfold below. There were way too many of them, and he knew there must be something he could do. Wedge saw the opportunity to be helpful and took it, no matter the risk. He jumped down from the platform, took the dogs' attention away from Cloud, and then ran. 

"Catch me if you caaan!" He taunted, which only angered the dogs more. 

"Wedge!" You shouted. He only sent a thumbs- up in you direction. 

"What the hell is he doing?" Biggs asked, holding onto the railing. You found yourself gripping the railing as well, praying that the boy would end up ok. And if he did, you'd definitely give him an earful after the mission. 

The dogs chased him in circles while Cloud worked to take them out one by one. You and Biggs tried to help, but since they were all running so fast, there was always the fear of hitting Wedge instead of the intended targets. You both avoided the dogs closest to him and instead focused on the ones in the back. 

But one was getting closer and closer to him, snarling and ready to bite. It's head was at just the right height to take a chunk out of his ass. Once it got close enough, it sunk its teeth in. Wedge jumped at the contact, grabbing at his butt as he screamed in pain. But he couldn't stop running, not yet, or else he would become a meal for all of those animals. 

Cloud took the rest of the dogs out, and Wedge collapsed to the ground when he knew his threat was neutralized. 

"Think I... ran off... the pizza," He said in between ragged breaths. You and Biggs laughed. Wedge was just... so Wedge. That's the only way you knew how to describe him. Even when his life was in danger, he was still undeniably himself. You couldn't wait to give him a lecture for being so reckless.

"Hell of a show, man! If only the ladies loved you that much!" Biggs called from above. 

"I'm glad someone's enjoying themselves," Wedge replied. 

And just like that, the moment of peace was over. This time, your new threats were mechanical beasts, Shinra's newest and best mechs. Of course. Because things just couldn't be easy, could they?

The four of you began fighting against those metal monsters. Cloud and Wedge attacked from the ground, while you and Biggs used your height advantage to chip away at the machines' health. 

Still, Cloud was a far better fighter than the three of you combined, and it turned out he didn't really need your help either. He finished them off quickly. 

This time, there was no time to take a breath before the next threat appeared: more troops. And a lot of them at that. 

"Don't move!" They ordered to Cloud and Wedge as they circled the pair, guns at the ready.

And then came the unexpected savior: a man on a bike flying through the air. That red bike... it was Roche. And he rode in with the same maniacal laughter he did when you first met him. As he landed, he spun around all of the troops, dispersing them.

"Well, aren't we having a wonderful time kicking the hornet's nest?" 

You and Biggs jumped from the platform, running towards Cloud and Wedge. The troops you ran past didn't even respond, for they were too focused on Roche, a member of SOLDIER, helping the other side. At least that's what it looked like. It was too early to tell who's side he was really on. 

He parked his red bike, stepping off of it and turning to look back at the four of you. He glanced between Biggs and Wedge for only a moment, before turning to you. A spark of recognition graced his eyes as he looked you up and down, noticing the bandages on your arms. 

"Glad to see you're ok," he said, same sickening inflection.

"No thanks to you," you spat. 

"Weren't you going to do the same thing to me?" He raised a brow, a smirk playing on his lips as well. 

You huffed; he was right. You were going to do the same thing to him. He just beat you to it. Still, the sight of that weirdo infuriated you, and you had to hold your tongue to keep from telling him off. 

Roche's attention fell away from you and instead to Cloud. His eyes lit up at the sight of the fellow SOLDIER, that creepy smirk of his growing even wider. 

"You know what I want," he said, voice a low rumble, "A second dance, just the two of us."

He approached the mercenary, taking slow, methodical steps. His blade was held down at his side, scraping the ground as he walked. Then he stopped, taking his sword and holding it out towards Cloud.

"You turned the key," he said, placing his other hand on his heart, "then engine roars with excitement... it hungers to be set free!" 

His poetically erotic comment disarmed your group for a moment by sheer shock alone, though you all quickly regained composure. 

Roche wanted a one-on-one duel, but you recalled being told to have Cloud's back. Looking at Wedge and Biggs, you knew they were thinking the same thing. So the three of you held fast to your positions, weapons and fists at the ready. Cloud reached for his sword, and the three of you took a step closer. 

"Fall back," Cloud warned. You opened your mouth in shock for a second, before a hand on your wrist and pulled you away from the upcoming fight. Without even having to look, you knew it was Biggs. You crossed your arms over your chest in annoyance; you really wanted to punch that weirdo...

There was a second's pause as the two finished their stand off, before Cloud made the first move and ran at the other SOLDIER. And thus their battle begun, sparks flying from the clashing metal. Being genetically altered, their movements were much faster for you to keeps up with. It was a flurry of attacks, one right after the other. 

It seemed as though Cloud must have worn the man down, as the man staggered back, out of breath. After a few gasps of air, his breathing slowed again and he looked back up to Cloud, that same evil grin on his face. He straightened up, playing with the blade in his hand for a moment, before laughing. 

"I told you we were going to push it past the red line!" He said, sword pointed at Cloud. 

And so their dance started again. Their swords swung through the air so fast you could practically see them cut through the air around them. Huffs and grunts filled the night as their swords met over and over again. Neither party held back, both SOLDIERS used all their might, which made for an electrifying battle. Their moves were rapid-fire, an onslaught of attacks with the same intensity of a summer storm. 

Eventually though, cloud chipped away at the man's health and stripped him of his resolve. Roche fell to his knees, taking quick, labored breaths. Cloud put his buster sword back on his back. 

"Satisfied?" Cloud asked. Roche caught his breath and got back on his feet.

"With such fleeting pleasure? Hardly." He laughed, making his way back to his red bike. He stroked the seat for a moment, before turning around, "There are higher height to which you and I can still soar."

As the words left his mouth, more Shinra troops as well as a few more mechs came out to play. Was this night ever going to end? It was always one thing after another. You, Cloud, Wedge, and Biggs got into a square formation, each facing outwards so everyone's back was covered. 

The troops stood back as three mechs stomped over to your group, the one in the middle charged towards Cloud and he held his sword up in defense. 

Just before it could get to him though, Roche drove past, knocking all three mechs off of their feet. He stopped his bike for a moment, taking another sinister look at Cloud. 

"We really must do this again. Until then... try not to die. I'll see you on the road, my friend!" 

And then he drove off like a madman, skidding past both your group and the Shinra troops, his laughter echoing through the night.


	9. Chapter 9

The rest of the mission went swiftly. Not smoothly, swiftly. It was just as action packed as before, but things happened so fast that you could hardly keep up. Chaotic was the best word to describe it. Just as Roche left, more mechs had surrounded your team. Wedge was bound in chains by one of those metal monsters in Cloud’s place, as he had jumped in front of the mercenary. With one less member able to fight, your group was quickly overwhelmed, and for a moment there, it seemed like none of you were going to make it out alive. 

Then came the unexpected savior: another Avalanche cell. They swept in just in time to take down the mechs and come to an injured Wedge's aid. 

The three of you left as quickly as they came. You didn't mean to abandon Wedge, he was safe with the avalanche cell, but for the sake of the privacy of your team and it's plans, you all had to go. If you didn't, they'd surely capture you and ask questions. Wedge would understand. If anything, he'd be offended if you stayed. He never liked feeling like the team's stumbling block, so staying there and getting caught would hurt his pride more than anything. They'd drop him off sooner or later, completely unharmed. 

The three of you figured it was the Avalanche cell that had cleared the entrance of security before you arrived. But what for, exactly? They had something planned, but you had no idea what could be. Since your branch of Avalanche had been booted out from the rest, these kinds of things didn't spread to your group. The rest of the organization rarely ever did concrete work for the cause, they were cowardly, all bark no bite. But a rumor was spreading around, suggesting they were ready to get more forceful with Shinra. Apparently, they were working with Wutai. They had promised to give the nation all the materia they desired if they'd help the effort to take down Shinra. Still, it was just a rumor, and with no evidence to corroborate that claim yet, it would remain just a rumor. 

You, Cloud, and Biggs made your way to the rendezvous point Jessie told you about. A large number of Avalanche trucks were parked haphazardly outside, and it seemed like Shinra reinforcements on their way, for you could hear the sirens ringing. Your group really raised hell; Jessie would be proud. As the three of you walked towards the lot, a familiar face peaked from behind a crate. 

"You made it! Over here!" Jessie stood up and waved. But then she gasped, looking at something approaching from behind.

There were voices of Avalanche members along with the sound of a vehicle driving closer, and before you could even process what was happening, a hand dragged you towards the outermost crates in the lot, and then an arm wrapped around your waist and pulled you to hide behind them. Without even having to look, you knew it was Biggs. That cologne was unmistakable. His body was almost pressed up against your back, and his arm had not released its firm grip around your middle. You could even feel his breath against your neck... that STUPID little crush of yours just couldn't take a break, now could it?

Jessie watched as the Avalanche truck parked, its inhabitants staying inside for now. An argument could be heard from inside the vehicle. She could see the driver, but the solid walls of the truck obscured the troops from view. So she waited for the driver to turn away, and when he did, she quickly crawled over to where You, Cloud, and Biggs were. At first she glanced at you, and then her eyes traveled to Biggs, and down to his arm around your waist and your back against his chest. She raised an eyebrow at the two of you, which caused you and him to separate quickly. 

"Could you guys have been any louder? I mean, it made my job a lot easier, but," she whispered, stopping when she realized a member of the party was missing, "Wait, where's Wedge?" 

Just as she spoke, the Avalanche truck threw Wedge out from the side; he landed facedown on the ground, just outside the lot. 

"Wedge!" Jessie called, jumping up and ready to run to him. Cloud pulled her back down before she could be spotted. After a moment, the trucks sped away from the warehouse. 

"We'll go get him," Cloud said, and Biggs nodded, before they both got up and ran to the boy.

"Hey buddy, how you doing?" Biggs asked as he wrapped an arm around the boy's shoulder, Cloud did the same on the other side. For a moment, Wedge could only grunt in pain as both men got him to his feet. They walked him into the lot, where you and Jessie rushed to his side. 

"Not my finest hour..." Wedge groaned, just as Biggs place him down on the ground. 

"You get hit?" Biggs asked. 

"Just winged, I think," Wedge leaned back to sit up, but as soon as his butt touched the ground he fell forward onto his arms "or SHOT!" 

"Really? Let me see." Biggs pulled Wedge's pants and underwear down, revealing the man's ass. 

"Don't do that to him, not in front of everybody!" You scolded Biggs, placing a hand on his arm in attempt to get him to quit. He just grinned at you. "I swear, you're just like Jessie!" 

"What do you mean?" He asked, and suddenly the rest of the group looked away from Wedge and up at you. Jessie was grinning again. You should've kept your mouth shut...

"Y/N's just upset cause I pantsed her too today," She said. Your face grew red. 

"Not pantsed, you just saw my hip!" You retaliated. 

"Pretty sure I caught a peak of cheek too, it was very cute." 

You turned around, hiding your face with your hands. She just had to come out with that, and right in front of Biggs too... You really couldn't stand her sometimes. And you couldn’t help but remember all the other comments made about your butt the past two days, all of which were not so tasteful. Even thinking about them made you feel sick.

"You're the worst, Jessie." 

"I know someone on the team who might agree with me." 

"That's enough, Jessie" Biggs said. 

"What? Just gonna act like-" 

"Jessie!" He stopped her, and she just laughed. An awkward silence fell upon the group. Well, Awkward for everyone else except Jessie. She seemed to enjoy the uncomfortable scene in front of her. 

"Don't leave me like this, guys!" Wedge whined, bringing every back to the present moment. 

"Sorry, Wedge," you said to the boy; everyone went back to looking at his wound. 

"That's... wow," Jessie started, eyebrowes furrowed as she studied the injury. Once she was done, her face relaxed, and she turned to look at his face, "Your ass is fine. Maybe singed, but the only casualty is your underwear. This is like a bruise or a mild burn at worst." 

And then she slapped him on the bottom, causing him to suck in a breath of air. He recovered quickly though, pulling up his pants. 

"What's it with you and slapping people's wounds?" You asked her, and she just raised a hand to your hip, evil smirk on her face. You took a step away, keeping a hand out to block her just in case she tried anything.

"Now that was a gunshot," Wedge said, finally getting up to his knees. The mercenary let out the softest, smallest chuckle, which Jessie took notice of. 

"Is that a smile I spy?" She pointed out, and Cloud quickly reverted to his cold demeanor. It was too late, though. Everyone had seen that little smirk on his lips. She approached him, hands on her hips, to which he took a few steps back, looking anywhere but her eyes.

"It's not safe here, we should go," he lied, turning away from the group and walking off on his own. That poor boy, so capable, so talented, yet so awkward. Jessie let out a chuckle as she watched him walk away. 

——————————————————

Jessie wouldn't tell you how you were getting back to the slums, and that was beginning to worry you. She's always been the mischievous type, and by the way she was describing it, her method was probably unconventional at best and dangerous at worst. Whatever it was, you hoped it was a discreet way to get back to the slums, you didn't want to bump into that creep again... Jessie led your group closer and closer to the plate edge. What could she possibly have in mind? 

"Should be somewhere around here..." she said, opening up a large crate, "Bingo. I half figured my dad got it wrong, but nope! They're here just like he said."

You turned to see what she was looking at. Were those... parachutes? 3 parachutes in that container. Your heart skipped a beat. Of course she'd pick parachutes. Apparently robbing a Shinra warehouse while her friends fought off a whole militia for her sake wasn't exciting enough, she just had to go skydiving too. 

"Jessie..." you said, but your voice was drowned out by Wedge's. 

"Wait, what do you mean 'half figured?'" He asked. She turned around to face him. 

"Fifty-fifty is pretty good odds if you ask me!" 

"So we're gonna jump off the plate?" You asked, trying and failing to hide the fear in your voice, "You're kidding, right?"

"What, you scared? I'm sure one of these big, strong men can go with you!" She gestured to the three men beside her.

"I can't believe this..." 

"Come on, at least give it a chance! Who do you want to go with?" 

You glanced at all three men. Wedge looked like he was just as terrified as you, if not more, to jump off the plate, so no real comfort there. Cloud would be a fine choice, but... you knew Biggs longer, and you always felt safe with him. You glanced to the man in question, gazing into his eyes longer than you did the rest. He got the hint, nodding to you, a small smile forming on his lips. 

"Wow, real surprise there." Jessie said, tossing Biggs one of the parachutes. 

The others had made their arrangements. Cloud volunteered to go with Wedge, because someone would have to push that guy off. There's no way he'd jump himself. Although true, You bet Cloud used it as an excuse to not have to go with Jessie. Wedge appreciated it nonetheless. So that left Jessie alone with the last parachute. 

You stood against Biggs' chest, trying to buckle the straps that laced around his back in front of your own chest. Your hands shook slightly, making it difficult to actually succeed in that task. 

"Your hands are shaking," he noted. 

"I'm aware," you replied, much quicker and colder than you had intended. Finally, and with much concentration, you got the buckle to click. He only laughed, chest vibrating into your back.

"It's gonna turn out fine, trust me," he said, hot breath hitting your ear, which you tried to ignore.

"You're not scared?" 

"No, I'm terrified," his arms wrapped around your waist as he fastened the next straps, tightening them into place. You smiled, it was good to know you weren't the only one.

"Well, just like you said, it'll probably be fine," you tried to comfort him, "I'm guessing you've ever been skydiving before?"

"No. Never cared to try it either, but here we are," he held out the next two straps in his hands, "Hey Jessie, where do these go?" 

"In between both of your legs, they connect to the waist strap," she called. 

"Oh... ok," Biggs replied, holding them out just a second longer, unsure of how to go about this. Jessie noticed his hesitation and your red face. 

"You two are pitiful," she said before helping you with the last buckles on your parachute. 

—————————————————— 

Jessie stood to the very left of the group, looking out onto the sector seven slums below. It was a terrifying sight, and yet she couldn't help but smile. Her heart began to race, a feeling she rather enjoyed. This was going to be fun. She craned her head to right to look at you and Biggs and Cloud and Wedge.

"Thanks guys, I really appreciate you coming all this way with me. And like I said before, I'd like it if you kept this between us until after the mission. I don't wanna... complicate things."

"Sure," Biggs nodded, and the five of you were left staring down below, wondering who was going to initiate it, who was going to jump first. None of you were too thrilled to plummet over a thousand feet into the slums, except maybe Jessie, but she was, well, Jessie. "Hey Cloud," Biggs turned the the merc, "You let him down gently, alright?" 

"Yep." 

This was the moment, you thought. Everyone else was getting ready, too, bracing themselves for the descent below. Oh, how you hated to be doing this. But now it was too late to turn back, and too late to admit you had a fear of heights. You were stuck now. 

Jessie readied herself for jump, looking back down at the daunting sight. It scared her, but she enjoyed the thrill of scary things. And to be able to do this with her best friends and a cute mercenary, she felt so lucky. Wait, the mercenary... her eyes widened. She remembered she had to tell him something.

"Oh wait, I almost forgot! One more thing." Jessie said, pressing her hands together in front of her chest. And then she rushed toward Cloud. The issue was, you and Biggs were in between Jessie and Cloud. 

"W-woah!" Biggs said, holding onto the railing behind him, as Jessie nearly knocked the both of you backwards. "S-stop it, what the hell are you trying to-"

"Jessie!" You yelled, for she was leaning over your body to whisper into the merc's ear. Her ponytail fell directly in you face, her hair nearly suffocating you with the scent of green apple. You couldn't lean back either, as you were sandwiched between both Jessie and Biggs' bodies. You tilted your head up for air, using your only accessible hand to move her hair out of your face.

After telling him to meet up at her place after the mission, she studied the boy's expression for a moment. His eyes held the same emotions they always did when she flirted with him: awkward, bashful, and confused. He was so cute, she thought. She smiled, giving him a fist bump. Then she moved back to her place on the ledge both quickly and sloppily, causing you and Biggs to fight for balance again. Finally, the both of you found your footing. 

She leaned forward, gave a wink Cloud's way, and then jumped, her screams filling the night sky. Your stomach dropped as you watched her fall, and you let out a breath you didn't even realize you were holding when her parachute opened up. 

"Are you ready?" Biggs asked, his voice in your ear. 

"As ready as I'll ever be," you said, taking a long breath in order to calm your nerves. His arms wrapped around your waist. 

"You sure?" 

"What? don't tell me you wanna back out," You looked back at him, to which he nodded no, "Then let's get this over with." 

You jumped. And it was terrifying. You and Biggs screamed so loud you were sure the entire city below could hear you. The wind rushed past your face and whistled in your ears. It, along with the screaming, was so loud you figured you lost some hearing during the whole ordeal. After a few moments, Biggs opened the parachute, and the recoil caused the both of you to jerk upwards. 

You floated towards the slums slowly, peacefully, and your heart finally had a break, it's pace slowing to a normal rate. Cloud and Wedge opened their parachute just a moment later, floating just far enough away that you could talk without them hearing. 

"So, what do you think about the mercenary?" Biggs probed, catching you off guard. 

"He seems alright," you admitted. Aside from the fact that he was cold to you and your group, he was great to work with. 

"Jessie certainly thinks he's attractive," he hummed, and you glanced at the man in question. 

"I mean, she's not wrong. But he's more her type anyway. Not really my cup of tea." Upon hearing this, Biggs breathed a small sigh of relief.

"And why's that?" 

"He's a little too... cold I guess? and brooding, he's really broody." He laughed at your comment.

"Brooding, huh? You're one to talk!" 

"I'm not that broody!" 

"Yes you are!" 

And so the two of you argued like children the whole way down to the ground. 

———————————————————

Your parachute had flown off course at some point, making you land in deeper into the scrapyard than intended. Luckily, you didn't run into any monsters on the way back to the slums. That didn't mean you were safe, though, not yet. Ever since yesterday's incident, the streets had lost their safety. And since it was late, only a few shady figures wandered through the narrow alleys, their shadows looming in the night. 

You stuck by his side, hand held tightly over your gun, and Biggs did the same. Your neck craned at every sound, every rustling of the wind, every meow of a street cat. They were all false alarms, which you were thankful for. To say you were paranoid was an understatement. A big understatement. 

The route you two took was rather out of the way, since you didn't want to pass your house. The thought that they could be out there waiting for you was terrifying, so you avoided that area altogether. But Jessie's house should be safe, right? That was where Barrett told you to stay for the night, and you trusted his judgement. 

You turned your head to look behind again, gasping when you saw a figure in the distance. Biggs turned around quick, but both of you relaxed when you realized it was just Cloud. 

You turned the corner to Jessie's house, she was standing outside, unlocking the door. Turning her head, she smiled at the two of you. 

"Welcome to my humble abode!" She announced, holding the door open, "Did either of you see Cloud by any chance?" 

"Yeah, he was walking a little ways behind us, why?" You replied. She looked down the narrow alleyway behind you. 

"Hurry up, he's coming! Now shut up and hide!" She whispered, rushed you through the door before closing it. The two of you, instead of hiding, just stood out of sight of the doorway. A mere 30 seconds later there was a knock on the door, Jessie promptly opened it, eyes shining brightly at the man just outside, "Well, if it isn't Cloud Strife! I was wondering when you'd show up." 

Why was she rushing you in to her home and telling you to hide? To flirt with the mercenary of course. You should have known... She’s been all over him the past two days. That poor boy. 

You and Biggs listened in as she shamelessly flirted with Cloud. You had to give her credit, she knew what she wanted and wasn’t afraid to be direct. Cloud didn’t sound too interested though. Just awkward, like usual. 

“Wanna come over to my place tomorrow? My roommates are gone for a few days,” She asked the boy. 

You nearly cackled in shock, having to cover your mouth to muffle any sound that wanted to come out. You and Biggs looked to each other, his eyes were wide and it seemed like he was stifling a small laugh of his own. Both of you knew what was gonna happen next, how awkward it was gonna be when he rejected her. 

“No promises, but I’ll think about it,” he said. 

Your jaw dropped, eyes widening to the same size as Biggs’. He didn’t reject her... He seemed so uncomfortable all night, though. But maybe that was just him.

She closed the door, and quickly opened it again, "Psych!" She winked at the Merc, before really closing the door this time. She turned to look back at the two of you, her face dropping as she saw the dumb grins you both wore. 

"Psych!" Biggs mocked. 

"Oh don't start, at least I'm getting somewhere with the person I like. Unlike the both of you"


	10. Chapter 10

Staying at Jessie's was surprisingly less stressful than you thought. Since she had to finish the bomb for tomorrow's mission, she was much more no-nonsense then usual. It was a weird side of her to see, her only making jokes and teasing half as often as usual, and even then, she didn't carry anything on. It was both nice, since you and Biggs have been her main targets recently, and a little unsettling. Maybe something was wrong with her?

As soon as you had got to her house, (and after she flirted with the mercenary) she heated up a quick little meal for the both of you, though you insisted you weren't that hungry as her mother had just done the same. She didn't listen, and you couldn't complain; it was really good. She definitely got that skill from her mother. 

After that, she got her room ready for the two of you to sleep in. Once Biggs found out that the two of you would share her bed instead of one of her roommates' beds, he tried to argue his way onto the couch. He didn't think it was right to take her bed, and it just made more sense for you and her to share it instead of you and him. You knew from the previous night not to argue about it, though you did feel guilty taking her bed too. Jessie stayed firm. "Because you're my guests!" She said, but you could see that devious little smirk on her face. 

She made sure to acquaint you with her room, bathroom, and kitchen, since she would need to concentrate that night and didn't want to be disturbed with an onslaught of questions. With that, she permitted you to use anything of hers you needed. Then, she gave you both a pair of clean clothes to wear to bed (Biggs recieved an ex's old clothes) and she would later wash your dirty clothes for tomorrow's mission. 

After all that was done, and in lightning speed since she had work to do, she sat down at her kitchen table, readying supplies to finish the bomb. Biggs observed this, watching her carefully until she noticed his not-too-subtle gaze. 

"I'm going to finish making this bad-boy, and then I'm going to bed," she started, "You two should get some sleep, too. You've got an early morning ahead of you."

"That's a good idea," you replied, turning on your heels to get ready for bed. Biggs, on the other hand, kept his eyes glued her hands as they fiddled with the wiring. 

"Do you need any help?" He asked her, and she stared at him a moment before giving him a quizzical look. 

"I appreciate the offer, but... do you actually know anything about bomb making?" 

"Well... no,” he admitted. You couldn’t help but notice how strange he was acting.

"Biggs," you said, and he finally turned to you. His eyes were filled to the brim with worry, about tomorrow's mission no doubt. His overthinking was no secret to anyone, though he only ever showed it when it got really bad. Now was one of those times. You placed a hand on his shoulder, trying to ease some of his nervous tension, "We should probably get some sleep. If we want to do our best on the mission tomorrow, we need to get some rest." 

"Yeah, Y/N's right. I think I can handle this alone, but thanks for the offer.”

He stared into your eyes, and then looked back at Jessie, before nodding silently. You held onto his arm as the two of you entered Jessie's room, closing the door behind you. 

"You're worried about tomorrow, aren't you?" You asked. He stayed silent for a moment, taking a seat on the bed and taking a deep breath. You followed him to the bed. 

"Y/N, do you believe in omens?" He asked. You were taken aback by the question. 

"Well... I don't know," you sat down beside him, "I'm guessing you do?" 

"I don't know," he said, and you laughed softly, placing a hand on his shoulder. It was still so tense. 

"Then you shouldn't have to worry."

"Just... so many things have gone wrong recently, I can't help but feel like it's a sign for something worse to come. I don't want anything to happen on tomorrow's mission." 

"There's only so much in our control. We can try our best to prepare but we can't change the inevitable," you brought your hand down onto one of his own, squeezing slightly, "but I guess that won't stop you from trying, right?" 

"It hasn't before," he said, eyes glancing down at you hand over his own. And he was silent for a moment more, no doubt battling the thoughts in his head, "It'll probably be fine. I did plan it, after all."

"Humble," you laughed, then there was a pause. Both of you needed to get some sleep, but both of you smelled pretty bad, too. The two of you had worked up a real sweat on Jessie's mission, “I know what'll make you feel better: a hot shower. Besides, you need one. You smell like ass.”

"You don't smell too hot yourself," he replied, and finally there was a smile on his face. 

"I know, I'll get one after you." 

So Biggs took his shower, which did help him feel better, and then you took one next. Jessie's bathroom was surprisingly nice for a bathroom in the slums. She had a lot of expensive products, gifts from her mother, apparently. And she said you could use any of them you wanted, you smiled, she may regret that later. 

In the end, though, you felt too guilty to abuse the privilege, only using what was necessary. Her shampoo and conditioner quickly became your favorite. They were salon brand, and after the shower you could really tell the difference. Too bad they were so expensive, or else you'd buy your own bottles. After that, you put on a set of clothes Jessie let you borrow and then blow dried you hair. 

Then, you picked up one of the new, sealed toothbrushes Jessie had picked up for you and Biggs before the mission. After opening the package, you wet the brush under the sink. Picking up the toothpaste, you squeezed some onto the brush. There was a knock on the door.

"What do you need?" You asked. 

"It's Jessie. I've got to take off my makeup." 

You opened the door, stepping back so that she could have access to the sink while you brushed your teeth. 

"Have fun on the mission tonight?" She asked, taking out her makeup remover and cotton pads from behind the mirror. 

"Yeah, almost dying was a real blast," you said dryly. 

"C'mon you didn't almost die," she shot a look back at you. 

"Yes I did."

"When?" 

"When I was thrown off the bike," 

"Oh... yeah, sorry about that," she wet the cotton pad and then placed it over her eye, "how's your hip?" 

"It still hurts," you mumbled, mouth filled with foam. There was a beat of silence.

"Thanks for going with me," she said, another beat of silence, "I didn't want a repeat of the last mission... I don't want any more blood on my hands." 

You moved to the sink to spit the froth out of your mouth. 

"We share that blood, Jessie." 

"But I made the bomb," she said, trying to say it as monotone as she could, as if it weren't hurting her, but you could tell it was. 

"You didn't know the explosion was gonna be that big. You didn't want all of our work to go to waste." 

She didn't say anything, instead taking out another cotton pad, wetting it with the makeup remover, and working to massage the eyeshadow away. 

"Jessie," 

"Let's talk about something less depressing," she said, "so, you and Biggs?" 

She plastered on a mischievous smile, but even her pro-acting skills couldn't hide that it was fake. 

"This is eating away at you, isn't it?" You asked, she took the cotton pad off of her eye and threw it away. 

"Is it not eating away at you?"

"Well..." you thought about it a moment, "I've been blocking it out for a little while now." 

"I've tried that... it hasn't worked." 

You wrapped your arms around her from behind, and for few moments, she just stared at the scene in the mirror. Then her hand grasped around your forearm, which was around her shoulders. 

"Gosh, Y/N, when did you become such a sap?" She said, halfway grinning through her words. You laughed, "You've been hanging around Tifa too much, she's rubbing off on you."

"Is that a bad thing?" 

"No, no it's not." 

You let go of her, but stayed in the bathroom to keep her company. After putting up her makeup remover, she pulled out a few more skincare products from her behind her mirror. 

"I know I tease you a lot, but I want you to know that I really care about you, Y/N." She said, completely unprompted.

"I know, Jessie. I care about you too."

"Sap.”

—————————————————————

As you entered Jessie's room, you noticed Biggs was fooling with the alarm clock on the bedside table, trying to set it to 6:00 am. Oh, how fun it was gonna be to wake up that early. 

You slid into bed as he did that, waiting for him to turn off his light. You couldn't help but be reminded of last night, and though you enjoyed the feeling of being wrapped in his arms, you did NOT want to seem to eager. So you kept your distance, and soon the light turned off and Biggs got comfortable on his side of the bed too.

You stared up at the ceiling for a while, your mind replaying all that had happened recently.   
The past two days had been the most chaotic days you've ever lived. From the mission to the creep and his friends, the debacle with roche, and breaking into the Shinra warehouse, you've aged 10 years in a measly 48 hours. 

That guy... the man you could only call "creep" or "pervert." You didn't know anything about him, but he knew your name and where you lived. He could be outside the house right now, getting ready to break in. You didn't want to think about it, so you pushed to to the corner of your mind. Besides, you had two of your best friends with you and they swore to protect you. You just hoped you could protect them, too. 

The last 48 hours left you exhausted, and even though chaos and fear spread through every aspect of your life, creeping into every corner and crevice of your mind, you fell into a deep sleep as soon as you closed your eyes.

They were surrounding you, all of your harrasser's men, smiling and circling in on their prey. Then came the onslaught of profanities, obscenities more like, hurled at you. Just like this morning. Except this time, you were all alone. 

But your friends promised they wouldn't leave your side. They promised, and yet they weren't here. You stood there, like a poor, defenseless sheep surrounded by a pack of wolves. The darkness only made it worse, as you couldn't make out the faces of your harassers, only their shadows. You were all alone. 

You tried to scream for help, to call out the names of your friends, but it fell on deaf ears.

"Hey sweet cheeks, miss me?" A low, husky voice whispered into your ear. You jumped, turning around quick. He chuckled at your response. It was him, the creep from the train, "I thought you said you weren't scared of me?"

"I'm not," you said, though not convincing. He only laughed louder, taking a few methodical steps towards you. What has he doing? You took a few steps back to keep distance. 

Then he rushed forward, grabbing your arms. You desperately tried to escape his strong grip, but failed.

"Don't touch me!" You screamed, still struggling in his grasp. Tears were falling down your cheeks now, so much for not showing fear. He let out another obnoxious laugh when he saw them. 

"Wake up," he said, a large grin on his face. You furrowed your brows, still trying to tear away from him. What the hell did he just say?

"Don't touch me!" You screamed again, louder this time. 

"Wake up," he repeated, and you still didn't understand what he meant. You managed to pry away one arm from his grasp. 

"No! Get away from me!" 

"Y/N, Wake up!" It wasn't the creep's voice this time. Your eyes shot open, and immediately sat up, breathing heavily. A hand fell on your arm and you jumped, quickly pulling away. Still surrounded by darkness, couldn't tell where you were, "Hey, it's ok, it's me." 

You turned to the voice, eyes finally adjusting enough to where you could see a face in the darkness. It was Biggs. He reached out to touch you again, this time slowly as he watched for your reaction. 

"It was just a dream, you're safe," He said, and once you finally realized that it was in fact a dream, and you were safe, you couldn't help the tears welling up in your eyes, "Come here."

Your cried into his chest, arms wrapped tightly around his body as you make sure he didn't disappear, that you weren't alone again. He held just as tight, his hand rubbing up and down your back as he whispered comforting words.

The door opened and the light to the room turned on. And then there was another pair of arms wrapped around you. Breath quickening again, you stiffened up in this person's grasp. 

"It's just me, Y/N, it's Jessie," she whispered into your hair. You relaxed a bit once you realized it was just her.

"I-I can't live like this any more. It's gonna drive me crazy!" You admitted between sobs, "I've got to do something. I've got to end it." 

"I'll kill him. I swear I'll kill him." Jessie said, and by the tone of her voice, she meant every word.

And you were so grateful to have your friends in that moment. They weren’t going to ever leave you alone. You would never have to deal with that creep, or anything else for that matter, on your own. They had your back. 

The three of you stayed that way for a while, Biggs rubbing circles into your back and Jessie brushing her fingers through your hair. They’ve never seen you so vulnerable before, almost no one has. And yet, even though your instincts told you to be ashamed, to be embarrassed even, you weren’t. You trusted them, and that’s what mattered. 

Jessie and Biggs shared a look with each other over your shoulder, a look of fear, pain, but mostly rage at the man who made you like this. And though Biggs never said any words, his gaze told Jessie exactly what he was thinking. 'I'll kill him, too.'

Eventually, once you had calmed down enough and were no longer crying, Jessie took another glance at Biggs, he nodded to her. She slowly moved away from you, giving one more squeeze to your arm before heading back to her living room. 

There was another moment's pause between you and him. Your face was still in his chest, as you weren’t ready to leave his comfort just yet. He wasn’t rushing you, though, his arms were still wrapped around you. 

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked. 

"Not really.”

"It might help." 

You took a deep breath before moving away from his chest and looking him in the eyes. You were sure your own were still red and puffy. 

"You already know what it's about.”

"Humor me," he said, laying his back against the headboard. You moved to do the same, bringing your knees up to your chest. 

"It was like what happened this morning, except it was dark and," you stopped, letting out a shaky breath. He wrapped his arm around your shoulder, "and I was all alone. It was just me and all those men, circling me like I was their prey.... I hate to think what's gonna happen if they catch me. I mean, killing me is one thing, but.... I think he wants to do worse." 

Biggs' grip around your body grew even tighter, his jaw clenching at the mere thought. If that man did lay a finger on you, he'd kill him. No hesitation and no remorse. 

"That's not ever gonna happen, and you're not alone. I’m not gonna leave your side until this is over, and I don’t think Jessie, Tifa, Wedge, or Barrett will either,” his hand rubbed up and down your arm reassuringly, “Not to mention all the guys in the neighborhood watch. They'd escort you everywhere if they found out about this, and knowing Barrett, they probably will. There’s a lot of people that little pervert would have to kill in order to get to you." 

"That's what I'm afraid of," you said, almost so quiet he couldn't hear it, "What if they hurt someone I care about? I couldn't live with it. All because I couldn't control myself on that train." 

"That's not going to happen. Everything’s going to be fine, I promise," he said, moving down to rest his head on the pillow again.

"I'm holding you to that," you said. He laughed, that familiar sound making your heart skip a beat. You slid down into bed, too, pulling the covers up to your chest. 

“We should probably get some more sleep,” he said, “Think you can after all that?” 

“I don’t know...” you admitted. 

“Come here.” And just like last night, he welcomed you into his arms. 

Your mind was still racing, but the gentle rhythm of Biggs' breath along with the patterns he drew on your back calmed your nervous system. He always made you feel less scared, less alone. And the promise he just made, you knew he would keep. 

The nightmare had left you more exhausted than before you went to sleep, and soon your eyelids started to droop. You let them closed, and just before you surrendered to sleep, there was a kiss placed on the top of your head. You froze at the contact, and underneath, you felt him freeze too. 

"I'm sorry, I hope I didn't cross a boundary just then," he whispered. You took a breath, finally relaxing back into his hold

"It's ok... It was sweet," you admitted. And after that, the both of you fell back into the same pattern. You fell asleep, and soon after, he did too.

—————————————————————

The alarm blared through Jessie's small room. Biggs gave the device a big smack over the top and fought his instinct to stay in bed. You were rousing too, but just barely. And you were too out of it to realize what situation you were currently in. All you knew was the the alarm was loud but the surface below you was warm, too warm to get up from. 

Biggs looked down at your form, so peaceful he didn't want to wake you. But he had to. The mission was the most important thing right now, though whether he would ever get to hold you like that again was a close second.

There was a hand on your back, softly shaking and trying to rouse you. But you wouldn't get up, no, because you were so tired, and the surface below you was so warm. 

"Wake up," a voice said, but your brain was functioning so slow; you hadn’t registered the owner of the voice yet. 

"No," you moaned, curling up further into the warm object. And then you recognized the voice, it was Biggs' voice. And the warmth was him too. And you just curled up into it. 

You shot up, face going red when you realized what you had done. Your wide eyes met with his, just for a moment, before you turned away out of embarrassment. He let out a warm chuckle.

"I'm sorry, I-" you laughed nervously, "Wow, this is so embarrassing..." 

"Hey, don't sweat it," he said, placing a hand on your shoulder and squeezing, before getting up and heading towards the door, "besides, it was cute." 

A small smile found its way on your lips; he called you cute.

And as he left the room to go get ready, he couldn't help but replay that moment in his head. Every time, his stomach fluttered.

Biggs handed you your clothes from the dryer and the two of you got ready in tandem. He changed in her room while you changed int he bathroom. Then he joined you in the cramped bathroom as both of you made yourselves presentable to leave the house. All the while, you kept quiet as not to disturb Jessie. She still had a while before she was needed for the mission. 

What you didn't expect was to see her sitting at her kitchen table drinking a large mug of coffee. Her hair and makeup had already been done as well, giving her a very awake and alert look. It was just 6:30, why was she up this early? 

"Hey guys!" She said, and you and Biggs stared at her a second longer, "I wanted to wish you two off. Y'know, incase I never see you again."

"Jessie!" The both of you said, accidentally in unison. 

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," she laughed. 

"You better be!" Biggs said, placing an arm on his hip. 

"I did want to say goodbye though, and good luck. You're leaving pretty soon, right?" 

"Yeah, we're just about to." 

"Then get over here quick!" She said. The two of you approached her, and she went to Biggs first, hugging him around the neck. He slowly patted the girl's back in surprise. And then she turned to you, pulling you into an even longer hug than Biggs'. 

"You two better make it back," she whispered in your ear before pulling away. 

"That's the plan," you replied. 

And after another quick goodbye, the two of you left for the sector 5 plate.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry its so late! I just started college and so the past two weeks have been pretty rough. I don’t have as much free time as I used to but I’ll still try to publish one chapter a week.

You paced back and forth in the small room connected to the sector 5 reactor. You and Biggs had been waiting for your group to show up. It was 10:56 in the morning; they were supposed to meet up with you at 10:00. 

Something was going terribly, terribly wrong. The both of you knew it. Even before the mission began, you were weary. But after successfully sneaking onto the back of the train and without seeing that piece of shit pervert again, you thought that maybe it was a false alarm. 

Your part of the mission went smoothly, you and Biggs had made it into the plate unspotted and did your job with plenty of time to spare. And up to that point, the plan Biggs made had been executed perfectly. Key phrase: had been. 

Then your Shinra radio scanner picked up something about terrorists jumping the train. Your heart sank. It was them, your team.

That was two hours ago. They were almost an hour late. The tension in the room was uncomfortably thick as the both of you tried to keep calm, but as the minutes ticked by, it grew harder and harder to keep a positive outlook. You had to expend your nervous energy somehow, and pacing provided the perfect outlet. 

Biggs, on the other hand, stood still in the corner of the room, his arms crossed and his eyes to the ground. His jaw was clenched tight, so tight he was in danger of cracking a few teeth. A gut feeling told him that this was going to happen. After all the recent omens, all the recent bad luck, he should've convinced Barrett to call off the mission. And now all he could do was wait and see if his friends would ever show up. He knew the only thing that would keep them from finishing the mission was death itself, and that didn't make him feel any better.

This was hell, you thought. Not knowing what condition your friends were in, not knowing how to finish the mission without them, the weight was growing on you. It was becoming a real possibility that they wouldn't make it, something the both of you would have to address. So you slowed your pacing until it reached a stop, and then you turned to face Biggs.

"... If they don't make it," you started, but then he cut you off.

"They will." He snapped. You stared at him for a moment, shocked at aggressive response. 

"But if they don't... we need a plan for that possibility, too." 

His gaze remained on the floor below him, though he finally released his jaw. He took a deep breath.

"Well... we've got the bomb with us, and Jessie made an extra detonator for this exact scenario," he began, finally making eye contact with you. His gaze softened at the look on your face, "We'd have to place the bomb ourselves and detonate it.... But they're coming, I know they are." 

"How much longer should we give them?"

"A few more minutes." 

As soon as the words left his mouth, other voices could be heard, as well as the clanks of footsteps on the metal grate floor. With each passing second they were growing nearer. A group of people, no doubt. It could either be your group or Shinra troops; neither of you were going to take any chances. You quickly backed up against the wall, and Biggs did the same on the opposite side of the room. Then, both of you moved to stand just behind the doorway. Your hand went to your gun, fingers curling around the grip as the footsteps grew closer and closer.

A figure stopped just outside the doorway, and the other members of the group stopped as well. Your heart skipped a beat. Did they know you were here? 

Before either of you had a chance to react, a large sword sliced through the air, stopping just inches away from Biggs' neck. He held up his hands up above his head, and you pointed your gun at the man with the sword. 

"Mercy," Biggs said, but then the sword was put away, and you recognized the swordsman. With a sigh of relief, you holstered your gun. Biggs slowly dropped his hands, eyes widening at the sight of the familiar blonde, "Wait... Cloud?"

"You scared the hell out of us," You reprimanded the mercenary, to which he paid you no mind. The rest of the team entered the room: Barrett and Tifa, not Jessie and Wedge. 

"Wait, where are the others?" Biggs asked. Barret didn't answer, instead moving to stand in front of the man.

"Report," he demanded, Biggs obliged him. 

"Topside's going nuts after some terrorists jumped off of a train. Nice and quiet here though. So quiet we had no trouble securing your route to the reactor," he said, pointing a finger towards a narrow passageway on the opposite wall.

Barrett and the others turned to look at the pathway, then back to Biggs. 

"You magnificent son of a bitch! Bring it in!" Barrett yelled, coming to embrace the man. Biggs quickly dodged it. Barrett's hugs, though well intentioned, were a health hazard. Upon noticing his expression of affection was dodged, Barrett grumbled to himself.

"Where are the others?" You asked Tifa. 

"Jessie got hurt and couldn't make it," She replied, your heart sank at the words. 

"Is she ok?" 

"How bad?" Biggs asked, roughly the same time as you. 

"Not so bad she couldn't rope in this guy," Barrett replied, an arm held out to the mercenary. Based on Barrett's demeanor, you assumed she hadn't been hurt too badly. But it still left more questions than answers.

"What happened to her? And what about Wedge?" You asked. 

"Twisted her ankle, should be fine soon though. Wedge is watching the bar and keeping her and Marlene company." Tifa replied. 

"Thank God," you sighed, "When our scanners picked up that some terrorists jumped the train I thought for sure the mission was ruined."

"Worked out pretty good, though, you all picking that train you did. While Shinra scours sector 4... you can waltz right on in to sector 5." Biggs said, turning to the hole in the wall, "it's a bit of a squeeze, but it ought to get you where you need to go"

"Little dark and foreboding for my tastes" Barrett muttered. The passageway was just barely large enough for him to fit in; you hoped he wasn't claustrophobic. 

"Beggars can't be choosers," Biggs trailed off, then he remembered the team's equipment. He picked up the bag from the ground, "oh, and you'll be needing this, of course"

Tifa took the bag from his hands, opening it and checking to make sure everything was there. Once content, she closed it back up. 

"All set?" Biggs asked, and Tifa nodded to him. 

"Ready to take on the world and then some!" Barrett threw a fist in the air. You laughed. Looks like the mission's gonna turn out ok, you thought. But let's not speak too soon...

"Then we're gonna head out." Biggs reached for his own grappling hook, picking it up from the ground.

"You two be careful. Stick to the back of the train, and use the backstreets to get to the bar. We'll talk about the next steps once we get back." Barrett said, looking you straight in the eyes. At least you thought he was, it was hard to tell with his sunglasses on. You nodded to him. 

Biggs opened up a hatch on the floor, the crisp morning air filling the room once he did. And then he fired the grappling gun onto the ceiling, tugging at it twice to make sure it was secure. He turned to you.

"Ready?" He asked, a small smirk on his lips. His free arm was held out to you, hand beckoning you closer. Your heartbeat sped up, because of course it did. This stupid crush wasn't going away anytime soon...

"Yeah," you replied, coming to his side. You hesitantly wrapped your arms around his neck as he grabbed your waist, pulling you flush against his body. 

You looked down at the plate's maintenance platforms below you, where the two of you planned to land. It was a good 30 foot drop, not a terrible distance, especially after yesterday's stunt. A thousand feet below the service platforms were the sector 5 slums. They were beautiful, always lush with greenery and life. It was the only place in Midgar that could naturally sustain life, and yet it was overlooked by anyone who could afford to live topside. Why they'd pick a metal jungle over the sector 5 slums, you'd never know. But hey, at least that meant itwasn't filled with stuck up rich people.

Biggs was getting ready to jump, his stance changing as he calculated the distance below. You got ready as well, holding on even tighter to his neck and taking a deep breath. And then he jumped, plunging both of you into the depths below.

—————————————-

You and Biggs managed to make it to Seventh heaven unspotted, opting for the back entrance rather than the front. Biggs had used a spare key Barrett had given him a while back to get in, and then the two of you made it to the bar. 

Jessie sat on a barstool, her bandaged leg extended a little further than the other, and Wedge sat beside her on the next stool over. The both of them were listening intently to Marlene, who sat on the edge of the counter, swinging her legs as she spoke animatedly about something. 

They all turned as they heard you entering the room. Jessie and Wedge gave relieved smiles at the sight of you and Biggs unharmed. Marlene was so excited for both of you to get back, she shot up on the counter and ran towards the edge to greet you. This, of course, caused all four of you to panic, rushing around the counter to keep her from falling. Biggs scooped her up off the bar and placed her onto the nearest stool. She tilted her head to the side, eyes brows scrunched up at him. 

"Can't stand on the counter, kiddo," he said softly, ruffling her hair 

"But you guys let me sit on it," she replied. For a little girl, she was very clever and observant. 

"But running on the counter is dangerous, a lot more dangerous than just sitting," You reminded the girl, and she seemed content with that answer.

"We just don't want you to get hurt," Jessie said, and the girl nodded. 

"Yeah, it would scare your dad real bad if something happened," Biggs sighed, "Scare all of us, too." 

"Is daddy coming home soon?" She asked, and the four of you froze up. If all went well, then he would be, but unfortunately that wasn't a guarantee.

"Of course he is," Jessie said, sounding much more sure than any of you could. Thank God she spoke up, "So... you gonna finish that great story, Marlene? Or start over so Y/N and Biggs can hear it?" 

The little girl started over, large smile and lots of animated hand gestures as she told the account of her last adventure. For a child, she was a great storyteller, using different inflections for dramatic effect. And your group made sure to react to the story at all the right times. Her tale was soon over, and her grin grew even larger from the praise she recieved once she had finished.

After a little while, the girl grew bored of the bar and all the adults. Jumping off the stool, she said a quick goodbye and told everyone she'd be playing with Betty. Then she left. Wedge jumped up and chased after the child, as it was his responsibility to watch her, leaving you, Jessie, and Biggs alone at the bar. Jessie watched as the doors finally swung closed, and then turned back to look at you. 

"Glad to see you two are ok," she began, "You were late, I was starting to get a little bit worried."

"Yeah, well Barret and the others were late getting to the plate," Biggs said. 

"Apparently they jumped off the train," you added. Jessie did a double take, her eyes widening up at yours. 

"You're kidding..." 

"Wish I was, we picked it up on the scanners. I though for sure the mission was screwed, that they were screwed... but they pulled through, thank God." 

"We're a lucky group, that's for sure," Biggs sighed. 

"You're telling me..." Jessie said. There was a beat of silence as she stared at a picture on the wall, a candid shot of the whole group on Marlene's fourth birthday, “We're depending on them now."

The wait for them to come back was uncomfortable, to say the least. Even though your team was fully capable of whatever was thrown their way, and they consistently defied all odds, there would always be an inkling of worry in your heart. They were more than your team, they were your family, the only family you had. If something ever happened to them, you didn’t know what you’d do. Biggs and Jessie were worried, too. You could tell. 

Jessie tried to ease the tension, to fake some pep, but you knew her well enough to see through it. Her efforts were appreciated, though, as the conversations made for a momentary distraction. But Biggs stayed mostly silent, his jaw tight with worry, his gaze always just past your head. 

Somehow during the wait, exhaustion caught up with your group. The burnout of anxiety as well as the lack of sleep the night before made staying awake especially difficult. The calm ambient lighting in the quiet bar didn't help either. 

Jessie was the first to fall, her head resting on her folded arms on the counter. Out of all you you, she probably had the least sleep last night. She came home late, stayed up to make the bomb, was woken up by you, and still got up before your alarm to get ready. That was only on the assumption she went to bed at all last night, there was a chance she didn't.

For a little bit, you and Biggs shared a whispered conversation since Jessie wasn't awake to make things awkward between the two of you. But eventually he too was growing tired. His arm lay across the counter, hand holding up his head as he tried to keep conversation with you. His eyes went half lidded, and though he tried to fight it, you knew he wasn't going to hold out any longer. Not after last night or this morning. 

"Tired?" You asked, though you already knew the answer. As if on cue, a yawn escaped his mouth.

"What gave it away?" He said, and his yawn caused you to yawn, "You look pretty tired too." 

"No, I'm fine. Maybe you should get some rest, though. You need it." 

"No, no, I'm good." he began, blinking repeatedly as to wake himself up a little, "Besides, who will keep you company if I doze off?" 

"I’ll be fine. If I get too bored I'll just take a nap, too." 

“Oh, ok." He hesitated, "You sure?”

"I’m sure. Go to sleep," you laughed. And he did just that, resting his head on the corner of his elbow on the bar. In just a few minutes, the bar was filled with two distinct snores. Jessie's was softer, airier sound while Biggs' was more noticeable. You couldn't help but smile at your two friends. They deserved the sleep.

You don’t remember when you fell asleep, or how long you had been out. Lifting your head up from the counter, you noticed both Jessie and Biggs were still in the same positions as before, snoring quietly. You checked the time: 2:14. And the rest of the team still wasn’t back? They had a late start, you reminded yourself, they were probably fine. Probably. 

Your stomach growled, and then you remembered you hadn’t eaten much all day. Surely nobody would mind you stealing a snack or two... So you moved behind the bar and looked under the counter, where Tifa usually left some snacks for the team. And just like you assumed, they were right there.

The double doors of the seventh heaven bust open, Barrett and Tifa coming through them. Biggs and Jessie shot up at the sound. Something must’ve gone wrong for them to rush in so abruptly. Something was terribly wrong...

Barrett looked both pissed and upset, his eyebrows deeply furrowed and his lips twisted into a scowl. Tifa looked upset as well, though she tried to feign composure. Her red, puffy eyes couldn’t be hidden, though. Had she been crying? You rushed out from behind the bar, coming towards her. 

"What happened?" You asked, and she flinched at the words. Tears welled up in her eyes again, though she fought them down. Something must have gone really wrong...

"Cloud..." she started, and you finally noticed the mercenary's absence, "Cloud didn't make it..."


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry it took so long! I never meant for this much time to pass without an update, but honestly I’ve lost all concept of time.

You, Biggs, Jessie, Tifa, and Wedge were sitting down at the table in Avalanche's hideout, listening intently as Barrett spoke. That is, everybody but Tifa. 

She had just lost her childhood friend, and though she tried really hard to act like nothing was wrong, to carry on for everyone else's sake, she wasn't very convincing. Her stare was blank and every once in a while she'd tear up, looking anywhere but people's eyes as she fought them down. The group tried to comfort her, but she kept insisting she was fine. 

This was the meeting you had been waiting for, the meeting where you'd figure out what to do about the men looking for both you and Barrett. You had already volunteered to go check out the Corneo mansion and finish the business with your little stalker, but so far that's been pushed aside or discouraged. You understood their hesitancy, but you also couldn’t spend another day with the fear of a stalker hanging over your head. You couldn't stand to live like this anymore, and if you met him up at the mansion, you'd be much more prepared than if he found you. There would also be the element of surprise on your side. 

"I asked some of guys in the watch about this Corneo character. Apparently he's the crimelord who runs Wall Market. I'm sure you've all heard the rumors about him," Barrett took slow, paced steps as he spoke.

"See? Another reason you shouldn't let Y/N go in there!" Biggs added. Barrett stopped in his tracks, staring the man down. So far, Biggs has interrupted the meeting a number of times to share his distaste for your involvement in any plans. 

"Will you let me finish?" He barked. Biggs slid back into his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. 

"So why is he interested in you?" You asked, ending the tense silence. 

"I'm not sure of anything, but I think we all know why he's interested. Depending on his intentions and his loyalties, this Corneo guy might become a real problem for us."

"You think he might be working for Shinra?" Jessie spoke up.

"Can't be sure without proof."

"You think they're all in on it? All his goons?" You asked, "Maybe that's why one of 'em picked me on the train. Maybe he knew I was part of it. Maybe that's why he's... well, stalking me."

"No. He picked on you on the train because you were a pretty girl sitting right across from him. He's stalking you cause you almost knocked his lights out. You probably embarrassed him." Biggs said.

"Hold on, I embarrassed him? He embarrassed me!" 

"He cowered in his seat while Biggs dragged you away. I'm sure it embarrassed him." Jessie said

"Probably hurt his pride or something. He seems like the kind of guy who wouldn't let the little things go, so if he thinks you slighted him on the train, he's gonna fight dirty by bringing his little crew to terrorize you," Biggs leaned further back into his chair.

"The nerve of that guy..." you seethed, "he knows he's not scary alone so he gets a group of men to come intimidate me."

"Or who knows, some of the other people on the train could've let him have it once you left the car. Maybe that's why he's upset." Wedge added.

"Really? Cause they didn't seem to stand up for me when I needed it," your voice trailed off, leading to a momentary pause in the conversation. 

"Now tell me, what exactly did this guy say to you on the train?" Barrett asked, you fidgeted in your seat as the memories you tried to repress were starting to creep back in. 

"Nothing I want to repeat."

"You've got to give me the details," Barrett said, urgent but not demanding. 

"Well, I was sweaty because of the mission and he... commented about that. Then he said something about taking me to guy in Wall Market. I'm guessing he meant Corneo. He called me property and then we started arguing. Biggs tried to take me out of the car, then he made a comment about my ass and that's when I swung at him." 

Barrett had finally sat down at the table and was listening intently. His usual hard-ass demeanor had vanished, and instead he appeared sensitive to your problem. You appreciated it, as well as the fact that he never yelled at you for getting into this mess. It still didn't make sense, though. He always yelled when people did something stupid. So why were you an exception?

"And what about yesterday?" He asked.

"Well, he and his little gang surrounded me, Jessie, Biggs, and they started harassing us. He told me I was lucky cause he was busy looking for you. Apparently Corneo put him up to it. He said I should watch out for now on, 'cause that's what a bitch gets” you paused, "Jessie asked what we could do to get them to stop, he said only I could make it stop. He told me to meet him at the Corneo mansion, said something about a truce. I don't know what he's planning but I've got to do something. I don't think he even expects me to come. I think this is the only chance to get an upper hand on him." 

"I don't think that's a good idea, y/n," Wedge spoke up.

"What other options do we have? Sit and wait around to see what business Corneo has with Barrett and see what that creep wants to do with me? We can kill two birds with one stone if I can get in there."

"No, Y/N, that's a bad idea," Biggs warned.

"What if we sent someone else in there?" Wedge suggested. 

"For Barrett, that might work. But I've got to face that dirtbag myself, he won't speak to anyone else." 

"And what do you think you're gonna do once you get in there, huh? Kill a man in front of his boss? Or just give 'em a little warning? How do you expect this little plan of yours to work out?" Barrett's sensitive disposition dropped.

"I.... I don't know" 

"See, you don't even have a plan! Now there's no way I'm letting you go in there alone!"

"... I'll go with her," Tifa spoke up. She had been silent most of the meeting, her mind far away from this place. Her sudden inclusion in the conversation surprised all of you.

"What?" Biggs did a double take. 

"Are you sure you're up for it?" You whispered to her, and she nodded yes. Barrett simply watched the woman, hand holding his chin in thought. 

"And I think I have a plan, too." She added. The room was silent for a moment. Biggs couldn’t shake his shocked expression; Jessie and Wedge glanced at each other, they knew his surprise would soon turn aggressive. Barrett looked between you and Tifa, eyebrows furrowed. 

"You're not seriously thinking about this, are you?" Biggs stood up from his chair.

"And what if I am?" Barrett said, giving Biggs a long and intimidating look. 

"... With me and Y/N's skills combined, we won't have anything to worry about." Tifa said.

"They could take on a damn army..." Jessie muttered.

"No, no, absolutely not! There's no way I'm letting either of you go in there!" Biggs butted in again, he could be such a stubborn pain when he wanted to.

"We're not asking for your permission!" You said to him. 

"Shut the hell up!" Barrett yelled, causing everyone to silence, "I'll think it over. In the meantime, meeting's over." 

Everyone got up to leave, but before Biggs could exit with the rest of the team, Barrett grabbed onto his shoulder. 

"We gotta have a talk." 

Biggs sighed, arms crossed against his chest as the he waited for everyone else to go back up to the bar. Then, once they were all gone, he turned back to Barrett.

"It seems you've forgotten who's boss around here..." Barrett began, voice a low growl, "and your little playground crush on Y/N is really starting to get on my nerves." 

"Crush? So because I'm worried for her safety it means I have a crush on her?" Biggs fired back. He was pissed, he's been pissed since the day on the train. And now it was beginning to bubble over.

"Don't you dare insinuate I'm not thinking 'bout her safety, cause I sure as hell am." 

"Then why are you thinking about sending her into Corneo's? Huh? You think she's gonna be safe there?"

"Never said I was. I wouldn't send her or Tifa into any situation I didn't think they could handle."

"But you're thinking about it." 

"That's right, I am thinking about it," Barrett snapped, "You need to get it into that thick skull of yours that I am the one who makes decisions around here. What I say goes." 

Biggs' cocky attitude fell away when he realized he crossed a line. Barrett wasn't playing. This wasn't just a heated discussion, this was serious. And when it came to handling Barrett, there was only one way to go about this: stand down.

"Y/N is not yours to control or protect. She's capable of handling herself," he stated firmly, voice a low growl. Somehow me managed to make it scarier than his yelling, "Now whatever decision I make, you better keep your mouth shut about it. Do I make myself clear?" 

Biggs was caught off guard by the intensity of Barrett's stare, but he regained his composure and shook his head.

"Yes sir," he said. Barrett kept the man's gaze a second longer before grunting and nodding; a wordless dismissal. 

Biggs turned and walked away, knowing full well that his boss's eyes were following him. He took a step onto the elevator platform, facing away from Barrett.

"Tell Tifa and Y/N to come down here next." Barrett said, same tone as before. 

Biggs shut his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath and biting his tongue.

"Yes sir."

——————————————————————

You, Tifa, and Biggs approached the small chocobo stable in sector 6. It was on the very edge of wall market, the creep's stomping ground. If you and Biggs were caught out here, you'd be screwed, so you tried your best to lay low. You had borrowed some of Jessie's clothes and styled your hair differently to try and disguise yourself, Biggs did something similar. 

Just ahead of you was a bearded man tending to a chocobo. He wore a cowboy hat and leather vest; the typical uniform of a Chocobo carriage driver, but he wasn't just an ordinary worker. He ran the entire business. Chocobo Sam, you remembered. He had made a real name for himself in the slums, being an entrepreneur and all... but that wasn't it. He was also known for his ties to Corneo, Tifa had told you, and apparently he was one of the few who could grant you access to the Don. 

He looked up from his brushing, eyes intense as he scrutinized you and Tifa. Your breath caught in your throat. Not another creep...

"Need somethin'?" He asked, eyebrows furrowed at Biggs, staring at him as though he were the leader of your group. Oh, how far from the truth that was. 

"Yeah, you're Sam, right?" You asked, voice a hushed whisper. Even though there weren't many people around, you weren't taking your chances. He seemed to get the hint, stepping closer to you and crossing his arms. 

"And what if I am? What your business here?" He drawled, voice a soft growl. 

"We heard you could help us see Don Corneo," Tifa said. He looked the both of you up and down, taking a little too long to do so. Biggs cleared his throat and the man stopped. 

"I can't help you," he said to Biggs, "But you two are a different story. I could get one of you girls into an audition tonight."

"Just one of us?" Tifa asked. 

"Audition?" Biggs also asked, but was ignored. 

"Now that I think about it... I don't think the other two have anyone in mind. I think I could get you both in. You girls are right up his alley."

"What? The hell is this audition for?" Biggs asked again, this time too loud to be ignored.

"Well..." Sam started, his voice hushed, "its an audition to be Corneo's bride for the night." 

Biggs face went slack as he stared at the man.

"So this is a sex ring." 

"Keep your voice down, man!" Sam whispered, giving Biggs a look before scanning the surrounding area for any onlookers. 

"Uh uh. No fucking way," Biggs said, grabbing both you and tifa's arms, pulling you away from the stable, "No way I'm letting either of you in there!" 

"C'mon, you know we can handle this!" You yanked your arm out of his grasp

"Not with how you've been freezing up lately! Remember yesterday?"

"We were surrounded! We weren't prepared last time. This time will be different. We have an actual plan, a solid one," You said. 

"Did you two know this was a sex ring?" He asked, arms crossed over his chest. 

"... It was part of the plan," Tifa admitted. Biggs let out an angry sigh, running a hand through his hair.

"I knew you'd react like this..." you muttered. 

Tifa looked between the two, and sensing the tension, she took Biggs by the arm, leading him a few yards away.

"Do you trust me?" She asked, trying to initiate eye contact with him but he wouldn't look away from you. She sighed, even when he was pissed at you, he was still fiercely protective. Oh, he had it bad, "Biggs, Do you trust me?" 

He finally looked back at her, noticing the serious look in her eyes.

"I do," he said, quickly glancing back to you and everyone in the vicinity. 

"I will make sure she stays safe. I promise. But you've got to trust her, too. Can you do that?" 

He hesitated to answer, and for a moment, Tifa thought that his lack of response was his response. 

"I guess I don't have a say in this, do I?" 

"Barret already approved of the mission..."

Tifa waited a moment for a response but never got one. She shook her head; Biggs rarely ever got this upset, but whenever he did he was unbearable. 

She walked over to where you were still standing, gently grabbing your hand and leading you to Sam. She didn't have to look back to know Biggs was staring her down. 

Sam turned towards the both of you again, and then he glanced behind you for a moment before meeting your gaze. 

"We're in," Tifa said. He studied her expression a moment, and then yours. 

"You sure you want in on this? I can't promise you'll be leaving that mansion anytime soon."

You looked over at Tifa to see her response, you didn't want to force her into something like this. 

She looked turned to you and nodded. 

"I'll send a carriage tonight at 9. Dress your best."  
—————————————-  
Tifa sorted through her closet for something nice enough to wear to a formal audition. You already had a dress picked out. Jessie let you borrow her only nice gown for the occasion; it was laying on tifa's bed as you stared at it. The dress was beautiful, but you mind wandered from the gown’s delicate details to something you couldn’t get out of your head...

You and Biggs hadn't spoken since the encounter with Sam, and though you were still a little angry, the thought of him being angry at you really pulled on your heartstrings. He's been your rock the past two days, always there with you and for you, holding you tight when you were scared... No, stop. That was the crush talking. No matter how hard you tried to be mad at him, that stupid crush wouldn’t let you. 

You hated to think you'd have to go through another pervert to end all of your pervert problems, but you couldn't live your life like this anymore. You didn’t want to live in fear of those dirtbags and what would happen if they decided to visit you again. You shivered at the thought. Part of you wanted to stay away from him so badly, to avoid all of your problems and stick to hiding with Biggs. Deep down, though, you knew your problem wouldn’t go away unless you did something about it. 

That’s what Biggs didn’t get. Every waking moment you were on edge. You felt like you were going crazy, you couldn’t even sleep anymore. You didn’t have it in you to play the waiting game. And though your plan was risky, (probably more risky than you’d like to admit) you had come to terms with the fact that there was no safe or correct choice in this situation. You’d have to face him someday, so why not on your own terms.

"How about this one?" Tifa asked, pulling out a dark blue mini dress from her closet, holding it out for you to look at. Your eyes widened; It was a very sexy dress. 

"If you wear that, he's definitely gonna pick you," you replied, looking back down at your dress. Yours was still alluring, just not to the level of Tifa's. Or maybe Tifa was just sexier than you. That was probably it. 

"I don't know about that, I think you definitely have a chance too," she said, eyeing you from behind. You laughed.

"I'm serious, Y/N!" She said, "You're turning heads everywhere you go!"

"Yeah, and getting the wrong kind of attention," you admitted. And though it was a joke, your smile faded as you faced its bitter implications.

You picked up the dress from the bed, feeling it’s material between you fingers, and then took it off the hanger. Uzipping the back, you stepped both legs into the gown and then pulled it up to your chest. You zipped the dress up half-way before realizing that you couldn’t finish the job alone.

"Hey Tifa, can you help me out?" You asked. She stood in front of the mirror, trying to tie her dress up in the back.

"Yeah, give me a minute," she said, concentrating on the two ties that fastened behind the neck.

There was a knock on the door. You held your dress at the front to keep it from falling down as you headed over to the door. Looking through the peephole, you were both relieved and a little upset to see Biggs standing there. 

"Who is it?" Tifa asked. 

"It's Biggs.” You said, “Should I open it?” 

“Yeah, let him in.” 

You reluctantly opened the door, ushering him in with your one available hand before anyone could see you. As soon as he entered the room, the air went tense. 

"Can you help me zip this up?" You turned around, showing him your bare back. Perhaps this wasn’t the best way to alleviate some of the tension, but it was all you could think of. 

He stared at your bare back for a moment, his mind still hadn’t caught up to the present.

"Biggs?" You asked, “Never used a zipper before?" 

"Sorry," he said, before stepping closer to you. 

His hands pushed your hair over one shoulder so none of it would get caught. Cold air hit your exposed neck, and then his breath. It was only then that you realized how close he was. A finger gently brushed across your back, moving the remaining hairs away from the zipper. You fought back a shiver. And just a second later, he had zipped you up, finally stepping away.

You turned back around hesitantly, before holding your arms out away from your body. "What do you think?" 

Biggs looked you up and down, staring a little too long. 

"Well?" You asked again. 

"...Beautiful," he slipped, " I-I mean, you look beautiful. The dress is beautiful." 

"Thanks." There was a thick silence that permeated the room as you looked down at you dress, shifting your weight from one foot to the other. Biggs glanced around the room, but you caught his eyes wandering back to you every once in a while.

"Hey, can I get some help over here too?" Tifa asked.

"Of course," Biggs said, turning his gaze to her.

"No, I've got it!" You butted in, running over to Tifa and tying her dress up for her. She raised an eyebrow at you through the mirror, and you glared at her.

You walked back over to Biggs, who stood awkwardly with his hands in his pockets. He looked up at you as you approached.

"So what's brought you here?" You asked, moving to sit on Tifa's bed as you took your makeup bag in your hands. He sat down on the bed a foot away from you. "You're not trying to make me reconsider, are you?" 

He didn't answer. 

"We've been through this already," you searched through the clutch for your compact mirror. The door open and shut again, you looked up for a second, noticing Tifa had left the room.

"I just don't see how this is a good idea. He's bound to be at Corneo's place, how do you suppose this is gonna fix it?" 

"Look, I’ve got to do something. I can't live like this anymore."

"What if you make it worse?" 

"Then I'll have to leave Midgar."

The both of you grew quite at the thought. You didn't want to leave Midgar. Ever. But if you didn't deal with this guy, you'd probably have to. And if you were to mess up on this mission, you'd have to leave. The odds weren't looking good for you. 

"But I'll still have to leave if we don't face this head-on. So do you understand why I have to do it?"

He stared down at his lap and thought for a moment. 

"Yes, I do,” He turned to look up at you, "Promise me you'll be back." 

You searched his eyes, his expression, all too tense. He looked worried, was it really all about you? Could he care that much? It made you feel guilty that you could have ever put this weight on him. 

"I promise," you replied, your voice barely a whisper. His eyes hadn't left yours, and it was then that you realized how close your faces were, just a few inches apart. His jaw was still tight, you noticed, and you lifted up a hand to touch his face. You smoothed our his cheek with your thumb, "you need to stop clenching your jaw, you're gonna hurt yourself," you whispered again. There was a pause, and though it was only a few seconds, it felt so much longer.

“I have something to tell you...” he began, his eyes leaving your own for a moment, almost as if he were ashamed, or maybe embarrassed? 

“What is it?” You whispered, locking eyes with him again. You had unknowingly scooted a little coser to him, and he to you. Your hand hadn’t yet left his face, no, you held onto his face, drinking in his features as if it would be the last time. He moved closer...

The door opened and you two jumped, quickly scooting away from each other. A shocked Wedge stood at the doorway. 

"Umm, hey guys, uh..." he trailed off, his cheeks going red as he looked anywhere but your eyes. Your cheeks were burning, too, “the carriage is here. Do you know where Tifa is?"


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it’s late again! I feel like a broken record saying that every chapter... To be honest I’ve been going through it™️, but this series is my escape. I’m not making any more promises for how fast this will be finished. Anyways, thanks for the support. This chapter was the death of me.

Standing in the doorway of the small apartment, you watched as Tifa stood silently by the unmade bed. Her hands were clenched into fists as she stared at the cot. Taking a step closer, you knew why. The indentation of a person was pressed against the sheets; like someone had curled up and went to sleep. 

You figured you would find her here, but the sight still made your breath catch in your throat. She rarely let her guard down like this. She often put on an act, always there to help others with their problems but never sharing her own. Seeing her this vulnerable meant something was really wrong- and of course it was. Cloud was an old friend. The only piece left of a burned-down hometown. And now he was gone. 

Her shoulders shook slightly, you noticed. She must've been crying, which made your job much harder. You had came in to tell her the carriage was waiting, but it seemed like the carriage would have to wait a little longer. It felt wrong to delay or pause Tifa's grieving process just to help you get your ass out of trouble, but she did volunteer and no matter how hard you tried to talk her out of it, she always stood her ground. 

You took a quiet step closer, and then another, and another, until you were just a foot away from her. Placing a hand on her shoulder, you smoothed a piece of her hair behind her back. She jumped the slightest bit, but didn't turn. She knew she had been caught; there was no use in hiding it. 

"The carriage is here," you said. You hoped it didn't come off as insensitive, but there really was no time. Her eyes traced the sheets a moment more.

"I think I messed up my makeup," Tifa whispered, ashamed. She turned to you but didn't make eye contact, instead focusing on your necklace. Her eyes were red and watery, and just like she said, there was a small trail of black under each eye. 

"I can fix it," you reassured, "But are you sure you want to do this? You don't have to." 

She finally looked into your eyes, wiping her tears away and plastering on a smile. 

"You can't talk me out of this." 

You led her to the bathroom, taking some tissue and cleaning up the black smudges from under her eyes. Thank God she wasn't wearing foundation or else the whole thing would've been ruined. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't think I was gonna cry..." she said, "I shouldn't have come in here in the first place. It was a bad call..." 

"Don't beat yourself up about it, Tifa. It hasn't even been a day since it happ-" you stopped yourself. It was best not to remind her. 

She didn't reply. Instead, she seemed to get stuck in her own head, torturing herself with memories new and old. 

"Tifa," you said, placing a hand on her shoulder. She stayed in her trance a moment more. 

"Huh?" She finally turned to look at you. 

"Don't do that to yourself."

"...You're right." 

She looked herself over in the mirror, examining her eyes to see if you had fixed the smudged mascara. To her relief, the makeup left no remnants; it looked as though it had never been messed up. The redness had started to fade away, but whether or not anyone would notice was another issue. There was no time for it anyway. 

"Are you two ready?" A muffled voice asked from behind the door. It was Biggs. 

"Almost done!" You replied. Then you looked back at Tifa, silently waiting for her confirmation. 

She let out a held breath, "let's go."

You opened the door of the apartment, meeting eyes with the three people standing just outside it. Jessie stood to the far left, leaning on to the railing with her side to help support her weight: her leg was still hurting her a little, so it was best to stay off of it. Biggs was in the middle, his back against the railing and his arms crossed over his chest. And Wedge stood to the right of him, awkwardly looking between the four of you. After what he had just seen a few minutes ago, you couldn't blame him. 

Wedge must've kept his mouth shut, because Jessie wasn't pestering you or Biggs. You'd have to thank him later. Speaking of Biggs, he was playing it off as well. Nothing in his demeanor was different than usual. From Jessie's perspective, nothing had happened between you. 

"Oooh~ you two sure clean up nice!" Jessie said, "I really am the ugly one in our friend group."

You rolled your eyes. The nerve of her to call herself ugly...

"Chocobo's waiting just around the corner," Biggs said, "Can't keep 'em waiting."

Tifa led the way, speed-walking down the steps with relative ease in order to avoid any questioning about her red eyes. You were about to catch up with her when Jessie spoke up from behind you.

"Damn, Y/N, I really think you should keep that dress! It really accentuates your best features."

And then she slapped your ass. 

"Jessie!" You yelped, turning around to glare at her. 

"Just saying..." she smirked, passing you and walking down the stairs. You stood frozen as you watched her walk away. The nerve of that girl...

Another body took her place beside you, Biggs, and he seemed to wait for you to continue. You glanced over at him and noticed his hand was outstretched as if to help you down. A small smile formed on your lips when you took it. 

"Thanks," you said, grabbing some of your dress with your other hand so you wouldn't trip on it. You took careful steps down the stairs; one bad move in your heels and you could faceplant, “I really can't stand her sometimes..."

"I know what you mean. She's a real character, that's for sure." 

You both reached the bottom of the steps and you unclasped your hand from his, giving him a nod before catching up to Jessie and Tifa.

Just up ahead was the chocobo carriage and a stable hand checking his watch in annoyance. A look of relief washed across his face when he saw your group walking towards him. 

"Hurry up! We ain't got all night." He said, ushering you, Tifa, and Jessie over. He must've remembered there were only supposed to be two girls going to to Corneo's, because his brows furrowed as he looked between the three of you. 

"I'm assuming you're not coming with us," he said, looking Jessie up and down. While Jessie was naturally gorgeous, she really wasn't dressed the part, especially when put next to you and Tifa.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" She questioned. He only ignored her, instead looking behind at Biggs and Wedge. He rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Didn't know you two were having a farewell party. Make the final goodbyes quick, will ya? I've got a schedule to keep."

"Final?" Biggs questioned. The man didn't care to answer him either. 

The stable hand turned around, muttering to himself in annoyance as he went to tend to the chocobo at the front of the carriage. It gave your group a small amount of privacy. 

You said goodbye to Wedge first, pulling him into a tight hug. He was like a brother to you, and though you knew you would make it back to see him again, the thought of a 'final goodbye' shook you to your core. And though he never explicitly agreed, you could tell he felt it too. 

Next was Jessie. She had just gotten done with wishing Tifa farewell and was waiting not-so-patiently for Wedge to get done. As soon as he walked away, Jessie tackled you with a surprise hug. 

"Jessie!" You shouted. 

"Sorry," she smiled, pulling away to stand in front of you. She took your hands in your own, her playful expression fading into something more serious, "Kick his ass. End his life. I don't care. Just makes sure this ends tonight, ok?" 

You swallowed the lump in your throat before nodding your head. Hopefully you wouldn't have to end any lives tonight. 

"And you better come back here in one piece so I can pick on you some more." 

"Wouldn't want to take that away from you. Your purpose in life," you said, trying to lighten the mood. 

"It sure as hell is." 

She pulled you into another hug, a real one this time. Holding on tight, you prayed that this wouldn't be a final goodbye. Her hair still smelled of green apple. You were sure yours did too, since you used her conditioner last night. After all this was over, you'd have to buy a bottle yourself. After this was all over, you thought. That was the phrase getting you through it all. 

Biggs stood just a few feet away, watching you and Jessie's goodbye. He had already said goodbye to Tifa and was waiting for his turn to get to you. 

Jessie noticed his presence, and though she knew he wasn't trying to rush her, she got the hint. She took a step away and looked over at Biggs. 

"I'll give you two your privacy," she said, walking back to Tifa and Wedge for a second goodbye. 

Biggs took Jessie's spot in front of you. Something was different about this encounter with him than all the others, it was tense, awkward even. Well, that's what happens when you almost kiss a guy but get interrupted. Things get awkward. 

But you could tell that wasn't what made him so uncomfortable. It was about the mission itself, something that you two had fought over many times. The tension was only grew as you stared into his eyes. It was becoming too much; you had to clear the air. 

"Look, I know you're not happy that I'm doing this, but do you at least trust me?" You asked. 

He hesitated, and as the moments passed your heart started to sink. Why couldn't he just trust you like everyone else? Did he not believe in your capabilities? 

"...I do. I trust you." He finally said. 

Relief hit you like a wave. You let out a breath you didn't know you were holding as a smile settled on your lips. You pulled him into a tight hug and he reciprocated with the same urgency. His hand ran over your hair, then cupping your head as he leaned in to whisper something. 

"Like Jessie said, if you have to kill him, do it. You'll probably be helping out a lot of other women." 

Your smile faded at the thought. You didn't want to kill him or anybody. Sure, you wanted to deck him right in that stupid smile of his, kick him in the balls so hard he wished he were dead, but you didn't want to kill him. Why did one asshole's life matter so much though? Your hands were already covered in blood: the blood of Shinra troops and the unfortunate casualties of the bombing mishap. Those were innocents, this man wasn't. 

You shook the thoughts away; you didn't want to face that reality yet. 

"So you were listening," you replied, and you felt his body stiffen under your fingers. He pulled away and you released your grip on his shirt. 

"You caught me," he said, trying to play off his obvious embarrassment. There was another uncomfortable silence as you both separated; you shifted your weight from foot to foot as he rubbed the back of his neck. Wow, almost kissing someone really makes things tense. 

"So I guess this is goodbye," he said. 

"Yeah, I guess it is," you trailed off, another beat of silence, "but not a final goodbye." 

"Yeah... no, not a final goodbye." The air was still thick, filled with the weight of all your feelings and confessions left unsaid. 

You couldn't leave like this, not without him really knowing how you felt. But you couldn't just confess, not in front of everybody. You didn't think you had the balls for it either. 

But a gut feeling told you that you had to do something. So, with all your built up courage, you placed a quick kiss on his cheek. And though it only lasted a moment, you had memorized the feeling of his stubble against your lips.

You turned away immediately so you wouldn't have to see his reaction, and luckily for you, the stable hand was walking towards the back do the carriage. He opened up the wooden gate, ushering you and Tifa in. 

Picking up the invitation that was in your seat, you held it in your lap as you sat down. Tifa seemed to do the same, giving a last smile and wave to the group. Just a moment later, the stable hand took off. 

————————

The gate of sector seven creaked open, revealing the mess that was sector 6. At least that's what you assumed, since you couldn't really see anything that wasn't directly behind the carriage. There was an old playground just outside the gate, you remembered. It was mostly untouched from the destruction of the sector 6 plate. Lots of children still sneak into the abandoned playground since it's so close.

Looking back at Tifa, she seemed distant, an empty look on her face. She was probably thinking about her friend, the mercenary. It was a shame what happened to him. 

You placed a hand over her own and she looked came out of her daze, looking up at you. As soon as she did, your mouth went dry. There was nothing you felt like you could say to make her feel better, so you stayed silent instead. 

"Tifa!" A voice called from outside the carriage. It sounded familiar. You and Tifa turned to the voice. A man was keeping up with the carriage. His spiky hair, his flourescent eyes, and that ridiculously large sword strapped to his back... it couldn't be... 

"Cloud, Your alive! I thought we'd lost you!" Tifa said, crouching down on the floor of the carriage to speak to him better. Cloud jumped onto the back railing of the Carriage, holding onto the wooden bars as it continued through sector 6.

"What's going on?" He asked. Tifa shushed him. 

"I'll explain everything later. But now, we're on our way to see Don Corneo. You should head back to Seventh Heaven, meet up with the gang."

"But-" Cloud started, but Tifa cut him off.

"We'll be fine!" She reassured, "you've seen how much ass we can kick." 

Cloud looked between the two of you, creating a small dip in the conversation. 

"I have..." he sighed, before jumping down from the carriage. 

Watching his figure grow smaller in the distance, you let out a laugh of disbelief.

Tifa did the same, a massive weight taken off of her shoulders. She couldn't hide the smile blossoming on her face. Cloud, her childhood friend, was still alive.

————————

The two of you were dropped off at the door of a large, wutainese-style mansion. It was both gorgeous and disgustingly lavish; a real slap in the face to anyone in the slums. You knew this Corneo guy was a jerk, but you didn't realize the extent. 

There was a shady aura to the mansion; something to be expected from a crimelord, but it still put you on edge. You could tell Tifa noticed too, as she grabbed onto your forearm. You looked down at the invitation in your hand, the ticket in. Then you looked back up at Tifa. 

"You ready?" You asked her. She nodded, a soft hum escaping her lips as she did. 

You both hesitantly opened the door, revealing a small hall and another ornate door with three men guarding it. Your heartbeat rose as you saw them, and you sighed in relief when you didn't recognize any of them. No creep yet. 

You walked towards the man in the middle; a young, skinny guy with silver hair. Despite his age and stature, he carried a presence like he'd seen some real shit and was jaded by it all.

"Invitation?" He asked apathetically, and you gave yours to him. Tifa did the same, and he read the invitations, "Two from Sam, huh? That's unusual."

"Looks like he's tryna get on the Don's good side. I mean, look at 'em!" The guard on the right side said, gesturing to the both of you. 

"He's gonna have a hard time picking, that's for sure," The other guard, a large, gruff man, said, "Hell, he might just pick both!"

"He'd better leave us some leftovers!" 

What the hell did he mean leftovers? As much as you wanted to tell them off for objectifying you and Tifa, you held your tongue. A lack of discretion was what got you in trouble in the first place; you didn't want to screw up again. 

The silver-haired man looked up from the invitations, taking a few steps forward and signaling to the two guards to open the fancy double doors. 

"Your room is the third room up the stairs. Don't touch anything."

Taking a few apprehensive steps forward and into the main room, you noticed two more Corneo lackeys who stood in the very center of it. You didn't recognize either of them as the creep or any of his men, which was a relief. But you would have to face him sometime. That was the whole point of you coming here: to put an end to your torment, whatever means necessary. 

The piles and piles of junk caught your eye. Valuables were scattered all around the room, from expensive furniture to bricks of gold. You remembered what you'd heard about this Corneo guy- a lot of people were in debt to him. So maybe all of this was his payment. The sight sickened you; no man should have this much.

"Hey! Keep your eyes to yourself. You know where to go." One of the men said. Tifa took your arm again, leading you up the stairs. 

"It's disgusting," you whispered to her.

"I know," she agreed, "Corneo's a sick man."

"Damn!" One of the men shouted, "Take a look at that ass!" 

"Yeah," the other man laughed, "Did you see the other girls' boobs?" 

You stopped in your tracks on the staircase, considering whether or not to march back down and slap the shit out of them. 

"Come on," Tifa whispered, tugging softly on your arm, "let's just go." 

Thank God for Tifa, cause if she hadn't snapped you out of your trance, you might have just followed that urge and gotten yourself into more trouble.

You turned away from those gross men, attempting to tune them out. Following Tifa up the rest of the stairs, you remembered why you were here: to figure out what Corneo wanted with Barrett and to end your creep problem. It wasn't your job to teach these guys to respect women. 

Tifa pushed open the third room's door and held it open for you. Stepping inside, you rolled your eyes. It was another room filled to the brim with junk. Corneo was disgusting. 

"Seriously, who needs this much stuff?" you sighed.

"Apparently the Don of the slums," She replied, glancing around the room, "How much of this stuff do you think is rightfully his?" 

Before you could reply, a click caught your attention. The sound came from the double doors behind you. 

"Shit!" You hissed. Turning quick on your heels, you ran to the knob, trying to force the door open. Tifa joined you, having no luck either. She groaned as she struggled against the door.

A soft hissing sound began.

"Y/N!" She said, her eyes wide as she looked across the room. You followed her gaze and noticed a pink, opaque gas pouring out of the vents. 

This was a mistake, this was a huge fucking mistake. You walked right into this trap. And you got Tifa into this mess. Tears were starting to prick at your eyes as you banged on the door. You couldn't tell if it was fear, guilt, or the gas. It was probably all three.

"Let us out!" Tifa shouted, to no avail. Nobody was gonna get you out; they planned this. The gas had filled the room now, and you were starting to get dizzy. You tried to cover your nose and but it was a futile effort. There was no way to avoid it. Backing away from the door, you couldn't believe what you had gotten yourself into, what you got Tifa into. You screwed up. You screwed up so bad. 

Tifa lost her balance, dropping onto her hands and knees. You tried to help her, but you were so dizzy you had to kneel down onto the floor to keep from falling. 

"Tifa!" You called, nearly choking on the gas. She didn't respond.

The doors bust open. And then there were figures and voices, fuzzy and distant. You could barely hear them because of the loud ringing in your ears. That awful ringing, and the splotches in your eyes. They were growing worse and worse, until they took over your eyesight; your consciousness slipped away with it.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I totally didn’t proofread this chapter so let me know if there are any terrible mistakes. Also, I kinda found a plot hole in the game while writing this chapter and I didn’t care to fix it either. Anyways I hope you like this chapter, I think it’s had the most revision of any chapter so far.

It had been a while since you and Tifa woke up in what you could only call a dungeon. The cold, stone room was filled to the brim with torture devices. Looking around your nightmarish surroundings raised two questions: Who did Corneo use these devices on? And would you or Tifa be one of those people? You didn't want to think about that. 

You had already apologized to Tifa a hundred times for dragging her into this mess, and every time she would reassure you that everything would be all right. It only seemed to make you feel worse, though. She was going through the same shit as you and still felt the need to console you from the problem you caused. You hoped she was right, though. That everything would be alright. You didn't know what you would do if she were wrong. 

If the two of you did make it out alive, you still didn't know if you could forgive yourself for what had happened. When Tifa volunteered to help, you should have refused her. In fact, you shouldn't have even suggested going into the Corneo mansion in the first place. Most of the team was against the idea; you should've listened to them. And now you didn't know if you'd see any of them again. Biggs was especially against the idea, and you felt like a fool for taking such a risk. Biggs... you never really got to admit your feeling to him. Sure, you snuck a peck on his cheek before you left, but that wasn't a real confession. What if he took it platonically? 

Either way, it was too late now...

The doors to the dungeon opened. You stood up on instinct, preparing yourself to face whoever was coming down. Tifa seemed to do the same, readying her fists in front of her. 

"I wouldn't try that if I were you," a voice called.

Multiple figures came down the stairs: Three lackeys and two more girls for the audition. One of the lackeys carried an unconscious brunette over his shoulder while another dragged a rather muscular blonde down the steps. The third lackey held a gun, aiming it between you and Tifa. 

"Just stay where you are and everything's gonna be just fine," The man said. 

You weren't about to test him, so you kept still as the two lackeys carried in the other girls, setting them down onto the cold stone floor. Once they were done and had headed back up the stairs, the man with the gun slowly made his way up, too. He kept the weapon trained on either one of you the whole time you were within eyesight, and even then, he kept it held out beside him just in case of a sneak attack. Once he made it out of the dungeon, he slammed the door behind him.

As soon as he had left, Tifa fell to the side of the blonde, checking on her to make sure she was ok. 

You glanced over at the brunette. At first glance, she seemed fine, but you couldn't be sure until you checked. Who knows, she could've had a bad reaction to the gas. 

Kneeling down by her side, you placed two fingers onto her neck. The strong pulse felt underneath set you at ease; she was probably fine.

Upon closer inspection you noticed the woman was gorgeous, a true natural beauty with delicate features. You and Tifa had stiff competition, that was for sure. Though you didn't think anyone really wanted to win.

The blonde was beginning to stir, making soft groans as she regained consciousness. Tifa leaned over the woman just as her lids fluttered open. 

"Hey, can you hear me?" Tifa asked, and the woman jumped away from her.

"Tifa?" The blonde asked in a voice you vaguely recognized. You turned you attention away from the brunette in order to watch their interaction. Her voice sounded oddly deep for a woman, though you weren't going to judge. Why did she sound so familiar?And how did she know Tifa? 

"Yes...?" Tifa replied, just as confused as you were. It was clear she didn't know this person, which only raised more questions. You stared at the woman, taking in her both beautiful and slightly odd appearance. Her blonde hair seemed awfully spiked and layered, something you also found familiar. That and the voice... 

"You ok?" The woman asked. She sounded so familiar and yet you couldn't clearly pinpoint where you remembered her. It felt like her name was on the top of your tongue, and you just couldn't figure it out. Maybe the gas was still screwing with your head... 

Tifa nodded to the blonde slowly; confused herself at the familiarity of the woman. 

"Good," the blonde sighed.

"Wait a minute..." Tifa said, finally piecing the puzzle pieces together. She furrowed her brows as she stared into a familiar set of fluorescent eyes. Blue and Green, mako green. Just like Cloud's... Tifa gasped, leaning forward, "Cloud!? is that you? Oh my god, that makeup! And that dress!"

"Nailed it. I know. Thank you, moving on."

"I can't believe it..." you whispered to yourself. What was he doing here? Why was he dressed like that? And most importantly, how did you not recognize him sooner? You sure hoped it was the gas, or else you'd feel really stupid. 

You were so caught up in the realization, you didn't notice that the brunette next to you was stirring awake.

From the corner of your eye you noticed something move, causing you to twist to the side and see that the brunette had sat upwards, holding her head with her hands.

"Hey, you ok?" You asked, moving to her aid.

"I think so. A little woozy, but I'll manage." She replied. As you helped her to her feet, Cloud rushed over, lending a hand as well.

The brunette's demeanor changed as she caught sight of Tifa. From groggy and confused to cheery and excited, she bounced over to your friend.

"Hey Tifa, how ya doing?" She asked. Tifa stared at the woman in confusion. 

"Do you two know each other?" You asked. 

"Technically no, but I'm Aerith, a friend of Cloud's," the woman said. For being drop dead gorgeous, she seemed a little strange, "We were worried and thought we'd come help you two out." 

"Thanks...?" Tifa responded, her eyebrows furrowed and head tilted to the side. 

"What's your name?" Aerith turned to face you, a charming smile on her lips.

"Y/N," you replied, placing your hand out to shake. Cloud brushed past you before Aerith could reciprocate the action. 

"Cut the chatter. We've gotta leave right now," he said, leading the way towards the only exit. 

"No! Not until we've got what we came for," Tifa said. Cloud stopped in his tracks, turning around to look at her. 

"What?"

"We've got business here," you said to him, "Two things we need to take care of."

"And what are they?" Cloud sighed. 

"We've got to see what Corneo wants with Barrett, and I've got to get one of his men to stop stalking me."

"We're auditioning because we need some one-on-one time with Corneo, but we're only two of four candidates, so if we don't get picked, It'll all be for nothing," Tifa added, a small frown forming on her lips as she considered the outcomes. 

"Then your worries are over, aren't they?" Aerith said, moving to stand beside Cloud, "Cause the other two candidates are right here. Right?"

"Right..." Cloud groaned.

"So yeah! If we're all in on it, then nothing can go wrong!" 

"Uh, I guess not..." Tifa said apprehensively.

"You, Me, Cloud, and Y/N. Makes no difference who gets chosen, does it?" 

"I don't know, Aerith. It feels wrong getting you involved in all this." 

"Don't even bother trying to talk her out of it," Cloud said. 

"Aww! Cloud gets me! Took you long enough," Aerith slapped him on the shoulder. Then she turned back around, meeting eyes with you, "What about the second issue? The stalker? We can help with that too, right? I've dealt with a few stalkers myself, so that's why I hired Cloud as my bodyguard!"

"Well... I mean, only if you want to. I'd love the backup," you replied. 

"It's settled then! So what's the plan?" 

"One of the guards said something about leftovers, so I'm guessing the three of us he doesn't pick are gonna be free game for the rest of his men. That's the best bet for me to find and deal with my stalker. Once we teach him and the rest of the guys a lesson, we can go help whoever gets picked get information out of Corneo." 

"Sounds perfect!" Aerith replied, which surprised you because the plan was in no way perfect. But she seemed like the optimistic type, so maybe she was just trying to be encouraging.

"So what happens now?" Cloud asked.

"I think they'll call for us when it's time," Tifa replied. The conversation slowly died as Cloud and Aerith took in their surroundings for the first time. You could only imagine what they were thinking. 

"This room gives me the creeps," Aerith shivered, looking around at all the torture devices throughout the room. Restraints, cages, weapons-Everything about the place was so wrong... 

Cloud looked throughout the room for anything that may be useful later, and yet there was nothing. Well, nothing practical at least. Nothing any of you could hide under your dress. The strangest thing, though, was a vending machine in the back of the room shaped like the Don himself. But Cloud had no money on him, which meant it was also useless. Eventually, he wandered back to where you, Tifa, and Aerith were. 

A voice came over the loudspeakers:  
"Now ladies, listen up. I'm sure you're still feeling a bit woozy, but tonight's audition's about to begin. Head up the door to the left and up the stairs. Come on, ladies, let's hustle."

Well, that was your cue, so you and the rest of the group made your way to the audition. All the while though, you couldn't help but fear that you may be picked. What would happen then? Or what if you couldn't find the creep? Things could go very, very wrong in this situation.

———————————-

"Introducing Wall Market's most eligible bachelor... the one and only Don Corneo!" A Corneo lackey announced, gesturing to the doorway in the center of the room.

"Ladies," A creepy man, who you assumed was the Don, said as he peaked around the curtains of the doorframe. Without even looking at the rest of your group, you could tell they were all thinking the same thing: eww. 

The Don was an odd looking man, middle aged and generally unattractive. He compensated with an extravagant taste in fashion, yet it only made him look more disgusting. 

He sauntered around the corner, hands held out like some kind of gremlin as he licked his lips at the sight of you four. You wanted to throw up. 

"Nice. Very Nice!" He growled as he ogled at everyone's bodies. Never their faces, only their bodies, "Whichever one shall I pick?" 

He rushed over to Aerith, who was in the middle, and crouched down to admire the slit in her dress, slowly bringing his eyes up her body, all the while groaning in approval. 

"Shall I pick you?" He said to her. You turned your head slightly to watch the exchange. Aerith had a great poker face, you noticed. Despite the fact that he just undressed her with his eyes, she acted as if everything was fine.

Corneo then moved to Tifa, admiring her from the back before moving to the front of her, clearly leering at her breasts. Tifa took a deep breath in and looked away from the man. How disgusting-he was clearly making her uncomfortable and yet he continued. 

"Or maybe you?" He said to her, or more like her boobs, before looking down at her bare legs. He laughed in contentment at the sight. 

Then he moved to you, taking in the silhouette of your legs underneath the fitted dress. 

Deep breaths, you thought to yourself. In, hold, and out. In, hold, and out. For if you couldn't control yourself this time around, there would be much harsher consequences. He was the Don of the slums after all. If you punched him in the gut now, (which you really, really wanted to) all hell would break loose. 

His gaze traveled up your stomach and then to your chest, a half smirk on his face. You had to look away. In, hold, out. In, hold, out. 

He stepped behind you and took in, well, your best asset. A creepy noise escaped his lips, you didn't even know what to call it. At this point you were biting your cheeks to stay silent. You prayed it would be over soon. And it was, you heard him move to Cloud. 

You turned to watch his reaction to the last contestant, trying to guess who he may pick. For the time he spend looking at Tifa's boobs, your bet was on her. 

Cloud was the only person he touched. Corneo slapped his hands on Cloud's biceps, then forearms, noticing how muscular they were. The look on his face was more... confused, or maybe impressed, than creepy. It was clear Corneo didn't expect such a strong looking woman in the auditions, so maybe it wasn't his type.

He then looked at the rest of you again, glancing from body to body. He turned around, lifting a finger in the air as he thought, before yelling: 

"Oh, Yeah! I've got it! I've got it!" He turned around quick, "Tonight's bride-to-be is..."

"Today's?" Aerith said, shocked. 

"And tomorrow's, or the day after's— if the Don takes a shine to you," his lackey said.

"Pathetic," Cloud mumbled. Your breath caught in your throat as the energy shifted in the room. 

"Hey, which one of you said that?" Corneo asked, finally looking at Cloud in the face as he approached, "Was it you?"

Cloud didn't answer, instead tightening his gaze on the man.

"Oooh, you got a mouth on you! I'm gonna enjoy breaking it in!" Corneo laughed, placing a hand on Cloud's arm, "Today's lucky lady is the big-boned girl!" 

He then tried to drag Cloud along, but Cloud wouldn't budge. 

"Still playing hard to get? I can dig it. Oh yeah." 

On the second try, he got Cloud to follow him. 

"The leftovers are all yours!" Corneo yelled over his shoulder, receiving multiple shouts from his rowdy men. 

"Ok ladies, y'all comin' with me," the lackey said, and although all instinct would tell you otherwise, you, Aerith, and, Tifa followed. 

Walking through the halls of the Corneo mansion, your heartbeat quickened. Your man was likely one of the guys waiting for the 'leftovers,' which meant one of two things: this could go according to plan and you'd teach your stalker a lesson, or this could go wrong, terribly wrong. 

You didn't want to think about how badly this could end or how stupid you could be for walking into a trap and leading two other girls in it with you, but the thoughts wouldn't go away. 

There was no need to worry though, right? You were skilled with hand-to-hand combat, and Tifa was a master at it, so everything should turn out ok. Those men wouldn't even know what hit them. The one wild card was Aerith— you didn't know if she had any fighting skills. And since she called Cloud her bodyguard, you couldn't count on it.

The man leading your group pushed open the double doors to a back room, then threw out his arms as he presented the 'leftovers’ to the rest of the men. 

"Ayo fellas, we've got guests! And y'all got first crack at 'entertaining' them!" He said. The room erupted into shouts and praises, "Courtesy of the ever generous Don Corneo himself. Never forget- the Don provides."

Your ‘perfect’ plan had already failed, you realized, because he wasn’t there. 

The man you went through all this trouble to talk to wasn’t there. So half of the mission was pointless. You endangered both yours and Tifa’s lives only to find out that the nightmare you’ve been living for the past couple days was far from over. Life had a real cruel sense on humor. 

Tifa and Aerith glanced over to you, and you subtly nodded no. 

Well, even if he wasn’t here. The plan would still be the same: beat up some lackeys and go back up Cloud against Corneo. Easy enough, right?

"So, are you ladies ready to get to it?" 

"Yeah, I guess I'm ready to go whenever," Aerith replied, “how 'bout you two?" 

"Mmm... Four guys between us... Okay. Let's not keep Cloud waiting,” Tifa said

“Yeah, let’s get this over with,” You added. 

The doors behind you bust open. 

“I came as soon as I heard!” A familiar voice shouted. A voice that made you feel sick to your stomach. It was him.

He walked around the three of you, taking each face and body in just like Corneo did. Once he glanced at you, though, his eyes widened. A half smirk grew on his face as he swaggered up to you. 

Your heartbeat quickened on instinct, but you held your facade together. He got off on seeing fear, so you weren't going to give him the satisfaction. Even if things went south, you wouldn't let him see you scared. 

"Long time no see, right hon?" the creep said, quirking his head to the side. 

"You know that chick?" Another man asked. 

"I sure as hell do. This is the bitch from the train, remember?" 

"You mean the girl that almost rocked your shit?" 

The other men burst out into laughter. The creep's eyes went wide as he looked at the group. He quickly masked his embarrassment, though, waiting for the laughter to die down as he stared at you. 

"Where's your boyfriend, huh? Wish he were here to see what I'm about to do to you."

What he said both scared you and made your blood boil. But you didn’t show it, you wouldn’t let him have that satisfaction. With sheer willpower you managed to keep your hands from shaking. And with more willpower, you readied yourself for what was about that happen next. 

“Actually, we have something else planned,” you said to him, before turning to Aerith and Tifa, “Right, girls?” 

“Right.” Tifa nodded. Aerith hummed in agreement. 

“Hey, we ain’t playin’ no fucking games here!” The creep said, stepping closer to you. 

You punched the man as hard as you could in the gut. He doubled over in pain, and then you tackled him to the floor. Tifa and Aerith took that as their cue to start fighting the other men. 

You don't know what came over you. It wasn’t really in your character to beat a man senseless, but something pushed you to do it. It was like everything you held back from him during your previous encounters had finally been unleased. Like the gates of hell had been bust open and your rage couldn’t be contained. With each strike you remembered all the pain and fear he caused you, all the shit he put your friends through, too, which only made each punch harder than the last. He wasn’t even fighting back anymore. You had straddled him, punching him in the face, over, and over, and over. 

It was a stupid, irresponsible thing to do in hindsight, as you never checked to see if any other men were around to take you down. Luckily, Tifa and Aerith really had your back. 

At some point you came to, a sudden wave of fear hit when you realized if you kept this up you would surely kill the man. Frightened by your own actions, you stopped in your tracks, fist freezing just a few centimeters away from his face. You finally noticed the extent of the damage you caused, and it didn’t look good. His nose was bleeding, probably broken, his cheeks were starting to get puffy, and it looked like he was missing a tooth. 

He opened his eyes, and your face dropped any expression it once held. Even if he was sitting helpless under you, there was no way you’d ever let him see you afraid again. 

"...please..." he pleaded, looking up to you in the hopes of getting any sort of sympathy. 

And then you realized something: he was pathetic. A sad, pathetic man with no character or integrity who meant nothing in the grand scheme of things. He picked on people just to feel something and he had no remorse for the pain he caused. He only cared about himself. No one else cared for him and no one else would miss him. 

Even with all that said, you couldn’t kill him. Because unlike him, you did have character and integrity and a conscience. And you couldn’t live with yourself if you ended this man’s life, no matter how horrible of a person he was. That was the difference between you and him: even at your angriest you had boundaries you wouldn’t cross, he didn’t. 

"Y/N," Tifa said behind you, and you turned around to see that both of them had taken out the rest of the men. They were waiting on you now. 

He noticed the two women behind you, and suddenly became desperate. 

"I wasn't even gonna keep looking for you! It was just a threat—I just wanted to scare ya!" 

"Who's scared now?" Aerith asked. Thank God she said something, cause your mouth had gone dry. Luckily, it gave you enough time to figure out what to say next. Something to stick with him, to make sure that he’d never come back to mess with you again. 

"I hope you learned your lesson," you started, "Cause if I ever see you again, or if any of my friends ever see you again, we will not hesitate. We will end your miserable life right then and there. Is that clear? Or should I teach you again?”

"I got it! I got it! I'll never mess with you again, I promise!" 

You stood up, towering over his bloodied body and determining whether or not you thought the statement was true. He stayed on the ground, eyes wide and pleading you to let him live. 

You weren’t going to kill him. That was already off the table. Instead, you gave a final, non-fatal blow: a kick to the balls. He curled into fetal-position at the contact, an airy whine escaping his lips. 

"Looks like we've come to a truce," you told him, "Don't test me again."

It scared you half to death when he lost consciousness. You dropped to his level, placing your fingers against his neck just to make sure you hadn't somehow ended his life. The beating against your fingers set your conscience at ease; the bastard was still alive. 

Standing up again, you didn't know how to feel. Or what to think. Was it really over? You wondered. Had your nightmare finally ended? 

Something told you it had; it was the look in his eyes. A look of pure terror. He had told the truth. 

"You did the right thing," Tifa whispered to you, "But we gotta go before any of these guys get up." 

"Don't worry about that. I'll deal with them," a voice said from the doorway. It was the silver-haired guy from earlier; in one hand he held Cloud's sword and in the other he held a large bag, "Andrea filled me in on the situation. I come bearing gifts- your gear. I'll do what I can to clean this up. Just finish the job." 

And then he dropped the equipment on the floor and left. How he got you and Tifa's clothes from Tifa's apartment, you'd never know. But it didn't really matter anyway, because he was on your side. And Andrea—whoever the hell he is— was on your side as well. It seems as though many people had it out for Corneo, including his own men. 

You, Tifa, and Aerith quickly changed out of your dresses and into your normal clothes. Then, you made your way go help Cloud.


	15. Chapter 15

As the three of you approached the door to Don Corneo's bedroom, you heard the tail end of a conversation. Curious, you stopped by the door to listen in. Aerith did the same, cupping her ear against the door. 

The Don sounded angry. He was yelling at whoever else was in the room with him, you assumed it was Cloud. Whatever was going down in there, it was getting messy. 

Then Corneo raised his voice louder so that it could be heard outside of the room. 

"One of you get in here and teach this bitch some manners!" He yelled. You looked back at Tifa and Aerith, gaining their approval, before the three of you bust the doors open. 

"Sorry, but you boys had to learn some manners too," Tifa said, a sly smile playing on her lips. 

"What the-" Corneo began, but he was cut off by Aerith.

"Cloud!" She yelled, bringing the sack and buster sword to him, "Your clothes!"

Cloud took the bag and began stripping off his clothing, much to your surprise and to the excitement of the Don, who began panting on the bed. Luckily cloud wore most of his uniform under the dress, and all that was in the bag was his external gear. 

Cloud yanked the braids out of his hair and then wiped away the pale pink lipstick before putting on his leather gloves and placing his sword on his back. Then he turned around, crossing his arms against his chest and staring down Corneo.

"What?" Corneo gasped, though he quickly regained his composure, "So you're a man, huh? What are you three up to?"

"We'll ask the questions," Tifa said, "Like: why'd you have men in Sector 7 asking questions about Avalanche?"

Corneo adjusted his position on the bed to get more comfortable, or casual even. He didn't seem to be very afraid, "Huh? I don't know what you're talking about." 

"Don't play dumb with me," Tifa crossed her arms against her chest, taking a few menacing step forward, "Let's try again. Why did you have men in Sector 7 asking about avalanche? Spill it, or..."

"I'll cut 'em off," Cloud said, placing his hand on the grip of his sword. Corneo shivered at the prospect.

"Alright, alright! I'll talk! I'll talk!" Corneo shouted, scooting further back on his bed. He heaved a sigh, "Some guy with a gun for an arm— I was paid to find him."

"Paid by who?" Tifa tilted her head.

"I can't tell you that! They'd hunt me down like a dog!"

"You’re already a dog...” you said. 

"Oh, I'm a dog alright..." he growled, sending a wink your way, "But I won't talk”

"Well you better..." Tifa said, "cause if you don't..."

"I'll rip 'em off!" Aerith yelled. As if things couldn't get more surprising. 

Corneo flinched, a shiver shooting up his spine as he squeezed his eyes shut. 

"It was the director of public security! Heidegger! It was Heidegger!" He said. 

"And what were they planning?" Tifa said. 

"Some things are better left unsaid, ya know?" 

"See, I'm not so sure they are. Better keep talking..." Aerith said, despite her cheery disposition, she actually sounded threatening this time. 

"Or I'll smash em," Tifa said, placing a boot onto the bed. 

Corneo recoiled with a whine, before turning back to your group with a much more calm expression. A sinister laugh bubbled off of his lips.

"Heh. Alright, you got me. I could never say no to a sexy girl," He began, looking at Tifa specifically, "Since Avalanche blew up two reactors, Shinra's decided they ought to stamp them out, home base and all. And I mean 'stamp out', by targeting the support piller and blowing it up."

"What?" You asked. He only laughed at your reaction. 

"Did I stutter? The plate will come crashing down!" He lowered his hands down in demonstration, adding a whooshing sound effect with his mouth. Then he looked back up at your group, "It'll be Sector 6 all over again. I'm sure you've been there and seen the wreckage for yourself. So you know exactly what Sector 7's gonna look like!"

"They wouldn't..." Tifa whispered. 

"Come on, guys! We gotta go!" Aerith said. 

"Yeah, Tifa, we should leave," You said, turning to her. Something about how calm Corneo was really unsettled you. It felt like he was still in control, and any second now, he'd prove it. The rest of the team must've felt it too, cause Aerith and Cloud were both in a rush to get out.

Tifa was still processing what Corneo had just said, her mouth agape as she stared at the man. You grabbed at her arm and she snapped out of it, turning on her heels and running with the rest of the group. 

"Before you do!" Corneo shouted just before any of you reached the door. 

"No," Cloud said, stopping in his tracks but not turning around. 

"Please! This won't take long!"

Cloud finally turned around, and you, Tifa, and Aerith hesitantly followed. 

"As everyone knows, villains only divulge their plans in a certain situation. But what is that situation?" 

He stood on his bed, grooving quietly as he waited for an answer, which no one gave. 

"Oh, I'm sorry! Times up! The answer lies..." he began, making sure to look each of you in the eyes. A devious grin spreading on his face, "in the sewers."

The floor below you dropped. 

—————————————

You couldn't make it to Sector 7 any faster. Even through all the obstacles you faced, such as the sewers you fell into, Corneo's pet, the train graveyard, and the ghosts, you would not be slowed down. Your team had hoped that maybe he was bluffing, but the sight in front of you told otherwise...

You could see the helicopters flocking around the support pillar, taking shots at the people below. Fire engulfed many levels of the pillar, and from the short distance away you could even see a few bodies slumped against the railing. Your team was probably up there, as well as the whole neighborhood watch, trying to save the Sector. It was real. Shinra was really gonna do it. Everybody was gonna die. Your friends, your team, even little Marlene.

"Dropping a whole plate... just like that." Tifa said, her voice wavering as she watched the chaos unfold from a distance, "No. No way." 

She ran as fast as she could towards the pillar.

"Tifa!" Aerith shouted, beginning to follow her. You tried to catch up with her too, because that was your home, your team too, and you couldn't see it all turn to ash. 

Past the train station, through the dirt streets, your surroundings flashed by as you ran towards the pillar. Your heart felt like it was doing somersaults in your chest, both from the physical exertion and the anxiety that your worst nightmares would come true. This was so much more than the Creep. So, so much worse than you could've imagined. 

Tifa stopped at a plaza that was only a few hundred feet from the pillar, glancing at the crowd that watched from a distance. The plate could drop any minute, why weren’t they evacuating? And then she noticed why: two troops guarded the fence of the sector, keeping the crowd from leaving. How sick.

A familiar gravely shout came from one of the pillar's landings, along with the sound of a machine gun firing away.

"Barrett!" Tifa shouted. From where she stood, she could see his silhouette on the landing. He was in a heavy shootout with one of the helicopters. 

You could only watch in horror as Barrett's form hid from a barrage of bullets before shooting his own. 

There was a fiery explosion just a level below Barrett, and someone fell over the side with the railing. The person let out a familiar scream, and the fire lit up the details of his clothes and figure. You recognized him immediately. 

"Wedge!" You shouted. Tifa and Cloud seemed to do the same. 

He shot out his grappling hook and caught onto the railing of one of the landings, just barely saving himself, before that part of the pillar became unstable and fell. 

He fell a short distance to the ground, groaning in pain once he finally smacked against the dirt floor.

Your group rushed over to him. Cloud reached him first and came to his aid. 

"You ok?" He asked, kneeling over Wedge and checking him for injuries. 

"Cloud..." Wedge managed to say through gritted teeth, "It's Shinra... they're trying to take out the pillar." 

"I know."

"I have to go back—" Wedge moaned as he forced himself onto his elbows, though it was clearly difficult for him, "Barrett and the others are still—"

"Stop!" Cloud commanded, pushing him back down onto the ground. He was too hurt to continue. Cloud stood up, turning around and to look at you three, "Stay with Wedge, I'm going up."

"I'm going too! I can still fight!" Wedge managed to get to his knees, making pained grimaced as he fought the pain it caused, "Biggs, he— they were shooting at me and he—"

"What?" You gasped, your blood running cold. You couldn't believe this was happening. You couldn't believe it. 

"Y/N, please..." Tifa said, grabbing you by the arm in an attempt to stop you. 

"No, if Biggs is hurt I've got to help him!" You said, shaking her hand away. You turned to Cloud, "Let me come with you. I won't slow you down, promise."

"No, stay with Aerith and Tifa," he said to you. 

"Y/N, Biggs wouldn't want you to do this," Wedge said. Another explosion went off on the pillar, you could feel it shake the ground. 

"I couldn't give a damn what he thinks right now," you said, turning back to Cloud, "Please? I can hold my weight, you know I can. I won't slow you down... I've got to make sure he's ok. I've got to help him."

He didn't reply, instead letting out a sigh as he turned on his heels to go up the plate. You followed him

"Y/N, Wait!" Wedge shouted. You turned to look at him, "Take this."

He held out a small sub machine gun, it was his spare weapon that he used when he didn't have the grenade launcher. 

"Thank you," you said, taking it from his hand. 

"Promise me you'll be alright," he said, grabbing your other hand in his own and squeezing it weakly. 

"Promise me, too." Tifa said. She took her eyes off of Wedge's injuries for a moment to look you in the eyes. 

"I promise."

You turned back to Cloud, who was waiting with his arms crossed over his chest. As soon as he made eye contact with you, he turned around and ran up the first flight of steps. You followed suit. 

Your lungs burned as you ran in circles up the flights of steps. Flight, after flight, passing body after body: you tried your best to ignore it. If you looked too close, you were afraid you might recognize some of the faces. Those bodies were surely members of the neighborhood watch— you knew them. 

Another fear kept creeping into your mind, that maybe on the next floor you'd find Biggs or Jessie or Barrett lifeless on the floor. Wedge said something about Biggs getting shot, and you couldn't get that mental image out of your head. The thought only pushed you to run harder, run faster, to push past the fatigue and reach your team before anything could happen to them. 

You and Cloud fought past the few troops left on the lower levels of the plate. You shot them dead so easily, and yet you spared the creep earlier. How ironic. But hey, a life for a life, and they took many lives. Call it revenge for the neighborhood watch.

It felt like a repeating cycle, climb the stairs, kill a guard or two if there were any, climb up the next staircase. You were starting to get dizzy from the repetition, but you didn't care; you had to get to Biggs. You had to find him and help him. 

The next floor, you found him. 

He was slumped against the main support beam, head hanging to his side. He wasn't moving. Your stomach sank at the sight.

"Biggs!" You shouted, running past Cloud and towards Biggs' crumpled body. Cloud followed behind, and as you dropped to your knees on Biggs' left, he crouched down on the right. 

He turned to look up at you, dirt and sweat adorning his pained face. He wasn't in great shape but he was alive, thank God. 

"...What are you doing here?" He asked, voice weak and airy. His breathing was ragged and his skin looked sickly pale. Not a good sign. 

"I couldn't just leave you and the rest of the team," you replied. Studying his shirt, you noticed how blood-stained the fabric was. Two bullet holes had ripped through the material and caused the bleeding: one in his shoulder and one in his side. He didn’t look good. He had already lost a lot of blood, and it didn’t look like it was gonna stop any time soon. Tears pricked your eyes as you watched it pool onto the ground. You couldn't believe it, you couldn't fucking believe it. 

"You still have time. Get out of here... please."

"You know I can't do that," you said, trying to keep composure as you talked to him. You took his bloody hand in your own, and put pressure on his side wound with your other hand. Cloud did the same, which may have helped with the bleeding, but it caused Biggs a lot of pain. He squeezed your hand tightly as the pain hit him.

"Y'know... sometimes I wish you weren't so stubborn," he said. 

"I know," you replied. Your voice betrayed you by cracking. And just like that, your composure was gone. A tear slid down your face, bringing some of your mascara down with it.

"...you're crying." 

He took his hand out of your own, then wiped the blood off on his shorts. He caressed your cheek, shakily wiping the stray tear away. 

"Looks like my hands are the ones shaking this time," he joked, before falling into another coughing fit. A second tear slid down your cheek, you quickly wiped it away this time. 

"I'm gonna get you out of here, I promise," you said, suddenly becoming desperate. You tried to wrap an arm around his shoulder to get him up, as did Cloud, but with the little strength he had, he pushed you away. 

"I think it's too late for that..." he groaned, a weak smile on his face like he could soften the blow. 

"Don't talk like that!" 

"Please, Y/N, just get out of here," he said, he was growing paler by the minute, and you could feel the blood gushing between your fingers, "please?"

"No, I'm getting both of us out of here," you said, determined to make sure you three made it off the plate. Maybe it was a foolish hope, but you held onto it, cause without it, you had nothing else. 

"Y/N," Cloud said firmly. You were not taking advice from him today. 

"Shut up," you dismissed him. Biggs gave a weak chuckle, though it quickly devolved into another fit of coughs. They were weaker this time, and it took longer for him to recover from it. But once he did, he grabbed Cloud's hand in his own, squeezing tightly.

"Cloud," he groaned. Though his body was weak his gaze was sharper than ever as he looked at the mercenary, "Promise me... don't let it be for nothing."

"I won't," Clod said, cupping his other hand onto Biggs'.

"You're a good man. Giving me that... that comfort."

He looked back at you, even paler and eyes glassy. 

"Get out of here, Y/N...." he managed to say between wheezes, "and... visits the lead house for me, okay? I've told them so much... so much about you."

"We'll go together," you pleaded to him, tears brimming your eyes once again. He only smiled, cupping your face with a trembling hand. You leaned into his touch, so close to his face you could feel his ragged breath against your cheeks. 

"you're so beautiful... Have I... have I ever told you that?" he asked, his shaky voice barely a whisper. 

You nodded yes, another tear falling down your cheek. He wiped it away, looking at you with those brown eyes. The stupid brown eyes you fell in love with. 

"Can I kiss you?" He asked.

The question made your stomach flip. Finally, after months of pining you knew how he felt. Of course you always had a feeling, but this was confirmation. Your dream come true, you knew how he felt and you got to kiss him, yet the moment was bittersweet. Why, why did it have to happen this way?

You leaned forward, pressing your lips to his ever so softly, afraid that if you weren't careful you would hurt him. He kissed back, his lips only ghosting yours since he was so weak, and you noticed the familiar taste of copper on his lips. 

He lips slowly fell away from yours, and as you opened your eyes, your heart dropped. Biggs had gone limp against the pillar, his eyes closed and head hanging to the side.


End file.
